Crystalline Heights
by Nightfire04
Summary: Follow a young girl as she explores the region of Kanto, as well as what lies beyond. Faced with her sister's achievements, she sets out to make a name for herself as well...and maybe become a champion along the way.
1. Chapter 1: A New Look On Life

Welcome to Crystalline Heights. I suppose I'll simply start by saying that this is my first foray into a Pokémon-based fanfiction, and so I'm not quite sure how it will turn out just yet. Hopefully, though, it'll turn out okay. This story will probably be quite long, as well, much like my other stories. With that in mind, I hope you enjoy reading.

* * *

_Crystalline Heights_

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* * *

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_Chapter 1: A New Look On Life_

* * *

"That's great, James!" thirteen-year old Emily Nagata chirped, looking at her friend's excited face over the video-phone screen. James Marien, like most kids his age, had already started his own Pokémon journey, and was currently in Pewter City. "When are you going to try for your first badge?"

"Probably tomorrow. I want to do some more training first. After all, Brock's supposed to be pretty tough. I think that me and Squirtle can handle it, though. Don't you, buddy?" James responded, looking beside him at the smiling face of his companion and starting Pokémon, Squirtle.

"Squirt-squirtle!" the tiny turtle Pokémon replied, nodding his head energetically. James just laughed, as did Emily.

"That's the spirit!" James said, turning his attention back to Emily. "Hey, Em, I'm gonna go. Give me a call later, won't you?"

"Sure!" Emily replied. "Good luck with your training!"

"Thanks. I'll do my best against Brock!" James told his friend, the both of them waving to each other before the call ended. Emily just sighed softly, walking back to her bed from her desk.

Emily was a cute girl by many standards, with shoulder-length blond hair flowing over the back of her pink, short-sleeved shirt. Her white pants blended in well with her small, white tennis shoes, which had small designs of blue waves on them. Her brown eyes sparkled with excitement, both for her and her friend James. After all, soon she would be leaving on her own journey. She would've already left, truthfully, but she wasn't able to travel to Pallet Town when Professor Oak gave away starting Pokémon to new trainers. So, she had to wait until she could find a Pokémon some other way. She didn't mind, really. In her mind, it just gave her more time to prepare. Just like her sister.

Emily's older sister, Elizabeth, had left 5 years ago on a journey of her own, to someday become one of the world's best Fire Pokémon trainers. Elizabeth had done quite well for herself, too. She had competed in all three of the major known Pokémon Leagues, earning a 5th place finish in the Kanto league, 7th place in the Johto league, and a 4th place finish in the Hoenn league, which was also the region where she was currently staying. To be more precise, in Mossdeep City. Emily was a bit envious when she found out that the current Hoenn League Champion, Steven Stone, was also a Mossdeep resident, but soon decided that picking on her sister about wanting to be with Steven was more fun than being jealous.

"Emily," her mother, Jennifer, called from downstairs, "could you come down, please? We have something for you!"

"Coming!" she called down, standing up quickly and running down the stairs into the kitchen. Her mother was waiting there, with a box sitting on the table beside her.

"Go ahead and open it," Jennifer said, pointing to the box. "It's from your sister."

"Sis? Wonder what it is this time?" she replied eagerly, opening the box quickly and pulling out the contents. Inside were several photographs; one of Elizabeth standing next to her Charizard and Houndoom outside of the Johto league stadium, another of her standing on a beach somewhere with a sunset in the background, among other pictures. Emily quickly looked through all of the photographs, grinning the entire time.

"She always has to show off," Emily said, laughing and handing her mom the photographs. Her mother just smiled, taking the pictures and beginning to look through them herself. Emily returned to the box and reached inside, then gasped as she pulled out the next object. It was a Poké Ball, with a small note taped to the top. Emily put the Poké Ball down carefully, before removing the note and reading it.

* * *

_Dear Emily, _

_I know how much you must miss me, and I miss you too. Mom told me how you wanted to start your journey soon, and how you missed getting your first Pokémon, so I decided to give you some help. I think you'll like it._

_Elizabeth_

* * *

"Why don't you go outside and see what it is?" Emily's mother said, a smile on her face almost as wide as her daughter's smile. Emily just nodded hastily, running outside with the Poké Ball in hand. Throwing it to the ground, Emily watched the Poké Ball open, light escaping and forming into a small figure, a light blue creature resembling a baby seal.

"Spheal!" it said happily, hopping up and down a few times as Emily hugged her mother.

"I love it! Did you tell Sis to find one for me?" she asked. Emily's mother just shook her head.

"I told Elizabeth what happened, how we couldn't take you to Pallet Town when Professor Oak handed out starting Pokémon. So, Elizabeth agreed to capture a Pokémon for you. I trusted her to know what kind of Pokémon you would like to start with, and it looks like she was right."

"So, does this mean..." Emily began, looking up at her mother with anticipation. Her mother just nodded.

"That's right. If you want to start your journey, it's up to you. I won't try to stop you."

Emily let out a cry of happiness, throwing her arms around her mother in a crushing hug, before gasping.

"I've gotta tell James!" she yelled, sprinting back towards her room after recalling her new Spheal.

* * *

"That's great, Em!" James exclaimed, watching Emily's excited face from the video-phone in the Pewter City Pokémon Center. James was proud of Emily; after all, he knew just how much she wanted to go on her own journey.

"I know! I'm going to leave later today!" Emily replied, grinning from ear to ear. "I'm so excited!"

"You're not leaving yet?" James asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Not just yet. I've still got to get ready, you know," Emily replied.

"Hm...here's an idea. How about I meet you in Viridian when you're ready to go?" James asked, smiling.

"You'd...you'd come all the way back to Viridian just to travel with me?" Emily said, stunned.

"Of course! You're my friend, Em. Besides, you don't have a Pokédex, do you?" James replied.

"No..."

"Then it's settled. I can come back to Viridian and meet up with you, and then we can go to Pallet Town to get a Pokédex for you from the Professor. It won't take me long to get back through Viridian Forest."

Emily didn't respond right away. She really didn't know what to say, after all. James was being so nice to her, taking time out of his journey to help her get started.

"James...I don't know how to thank you," she finally stammered, still smiling. James just shrugged.

"Don't mention it, Emily. It's pretty boring traveling alone anyway. I'd much rather have someone to come with me, you know?"

"Squirtle!"

James laughed slightly at his friend's outburst. "Looks like Squirtle agrees, too. I guess I'll meet you back in Viridian. Take care, Em," James said, waving to his friend.

"Bye, James!" Emily said, waving, before the connection ended. With a short squeal of happiness, Emily ran to her closet, taking out a backpack and beginning to stuff things into it. Several Poké Balls and a Potion were the first things to enter, and the backpack slowly began to fill as Emily continued to prepare her supplies.

* * *

"How do I look?" Emily asked her mother, spinning in a circle once to show off. Her Poké Ball containing Spheal was clipped to a special belt her mother had bought her earlier, and her backpack was slung over her right shoulder.

"I think you look terrific," her mother responded, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "I'm glad that you're finally able to start your own Pokémon journey. Just promise me you'll be careful."

"I will, Mom," Emily answered, nodding. "Besides, I'll have James with me. So I won't be alone."

A knock at the door gathered the attention of both Emily and her mother, who calmly walked over and opened it. Standing there was a young boy, his short and slightly messy black hair peeking from under his blue and white cap. His blue vest covered a short-sleeved, white t-shirt, and a belt much like Emily's was wrapped around his jeans, two Poké Balls clipped onto the right side. He also had a small backpack, slung over his left shoulder.

"Hi," James said simply, looking up at Mrs. Nagata. "Is Emily here?"

"James!" Emily cried, running to the door to greet her friend.

"Good to see you too, Emily," James replied, hugging the younger girl. "Ready to go?"

"You bet!" Emily said excitedly, nodding quickly before turning back to her mom and hugging her. "Bye Mom! I love you!"

"I love you too, Emily," her mother replied, giving the girl a small kiss on the cheek. "Be careful, Emily. You too, James."

"We will, Mrs. Nagata!" James said, motioning to Emily. "Come on! If we hurry, we can reach Pallet Town before the Professor leaves the lab." Emily just nodded, following James as he began to run back towards his hometown of Pallet Town.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to set in the sky when Emily and James arrived in Pallet Town, quickly making a beeline for the lab. Stopping in front of the door to the laboratory, both of the new trainers took a chance to catch their breath from all the running.

"I need to run more..." Emily moaned, bending over and putting both hands on her knees.

"Well, at least we made it," James said, pushing open the door to the lab and stepping inside. "Professor?"

"James, is that you?" the voice of an older man called from the back of the lab.

"It's me," James said, heading further into the lab. "I brought a friend who needs to see you." Emerging from the back of the lab, pieces of a small machine in his hand, Professor Samuel Oak stepped into view, smiling as he saw the two young trainers.

"Ah, James, good to see you," Professor Oak said, placing the metal parts on a nearby desk. "And you are?" he asked, turning to Emily.

"My name is Emily Nagata. It's a pleasure to meet you, Professor," Emily said, giving a short bow to the Professor, who smiled.

"I've heard a bit about you from James. It's nice to finally meet you, Emily," the Professor replied, nodding. "What can I do for you?"

"Emily needs a Pokédex, Professor," James explained. "Do you have any left that she could have?"

"You're in luck," he replied, walking over to a desk and rummaging through it, before pulling out a small red machine. "I happen to have a few left." Stepping back to the duo, Professor Oak handed the machine to Emily, before continuing. "This Pokédex is the newest model available. It has data on most of the known Pokémon from not only here in Kanto, but from Johto and Hoenn as well. I hope that you will put it to good use."

"I will, Professor," Emily said, taking the Pokédex and looking it over.

"Now, if you will excuse me, I need to lock up the lab. Thank you for stopping by," Professor Oak said, beginning to retreat into a back room.

"Bye, Professor," Emily said, James waving at the older man before the two stepped out of the lab.

"So? What do you think?" James asked, pointing to the Pokédex. "Neat, huh?"

"Yeah, it's great," Emily replied, pulling the Poké Ball off of her belt and throwing it, releasing Spheal in a flash of light. As Spheal let out a cry of happiness and rolled around the ground, Emily aimed the Pokédex at Spheal, a button on the top lighting up as information rolled across the screen.

* * *

_**Spheal**__**  
Type: Ice**__**  
Level: 5**__**  
Info: Spheal, the Clap Pokémon. It is completely covered with plushy fur. As a result, it never feels the cold even when it is rolling about on ice floes or diving in the sea.**_**_  
Attacks: Powder Snow, Growl, Defense Curl, Water Gun._**

_**

* * *

**_

"I just know that Spheal will make a great partner!" Emily said, putting the Pokédex away as Spheal toddled over to her.

"I bet so," James said, watching Emily pick up the smaller Pokémon in her arms before looking up at the sky. The sun had nearly finished setting. "Let's head for my house. We can stay there tonight, and head back for Viridian in the morning. What do you say?"

"Sounds good to me," Emily agreed, as the two trainers began to head towards the west side of town, awaiting the first steps in their journeys.

* * *

Well, two young trainers, one of which has quite the set of footsteps to follow in. Next chapter, Emily makes her first capture, and also gets a lesson in Pokémon battles the hard way. Anyway, please read and review! I'd like to get some opinions on the opening!


	2. Chapter 2: First Steps

I apologize for the lengthy wait for this chapter, as well as the relative shortness of the chapter itself. This week has not treated me very kindly. The chapters will get longer, however, so don't worry about that

* * *

_Chapter 2: First Steps_

* * *

The next morning, Emily awoke, yawning and stepping out of bed slowly. As she began to change out of her pajamas, she heard faint noises coming from the kitchen.

"James must already be up," she murmured, pulling a shirt on and stepping out of the room, rubbing her eyes drowsily.

"Morning," James said from the kitchen as Emily stepped out into the hall. "Want some breakfast?" Turning, he pointed to some eggs and bacon, still sitting on the table, as well as some orange juice.

"I'm not really hungry," Emily replied, stepping over and pouring a glass of orange juice.

"Too excited?" James asked, curious. Emily just shrugged.

"Maybe."

"Tell you what," James began, "before we leave for Viridian, maybe we could have a practice battle. What do you say?"

Emily's eyes immediately lit up. Her first battle?

"Sounds great!" she said enthusiastically.

"I thought you might like that idea," James commented, finishing off the last of his glass of orange juice. "Still want to be the best Ice Pokémon trainer ever, I take it?"

"You know it!"

For as long as James could remember, that had been Emily's dream. To be the greatest Ice Pokémon trainer in the region of Kanto, maybe in the world. Emily looked up to Lorelei of the Elite Four, arguably the toughest trainer of Ice-type Pokémon in Kanto, as her idol. Strangely enough, Emily also wanted to train Dragon Pokémon. James once made the mention that it was a strange combination, considering that Dragon Pokémon were weak to Ice-type attacks. Emily just smiled, replying that she knew, and was going to train to overcome it.

Of course, her decision of training clashed with her sister's ideals. As Elizabeth wanted to train Fire-type Pokémon, the two of them were always arguing jokingly about who would win between the two of them.

"What about you?" Emily asked. James just shrugged.

"I'm going to take on the Elite Four, maybe even earn a spot _in _the Elite Four," he replied.

James' ideas for training had seemed to be well-balanced as long as Emily had known him. He didn't want to specialize in any one type of Pokémon, but rather wanted to be ready for anything. He did want a spot in the Elite Four quite badly, though. When Emily made the comment that the Elite Four all specialized in a type, James replied that he'd just have to be the exception.

Finishing the last of her orange juice, Emily put the glass in the sink before turning to James, who was looking out one of the windows of the room.

"Ready to go?" she asked, causing James to turn.

"Yeah," he said, smiling. Poké Balls at the ready, the two of them stepped outside, ready to begin their first match as trainers.

* * *

"This will be one on one, if that's okay with you?" James called to Emily, who was standing a short distance away.

"Fine with me!" she replied, nodding.

"Good. Squirtle, you're up!" James called, lobbing the Poké Ball out onto the makeshift field, the turtle Pokémon appearing in a flash of light. Emily immediately pulled out her Pokédex, pointing it at Squirtle.

* * *

_**Squirtle**__**  
Type: Water**__**  
Level: 9**__**  
Info: Squirtle, the Tiny Turtle Pokémon. After birth, its back swells and hardens into a shell. It powerfully sprays foam from its mouth.**__**  
Attacks: Unknown.

* * *

**_'_Well, he's definitely done some training,' _Emily thought to herself. "Spheal, go for it!" Throwing her Poké Ball onto the field, the small seal Pokémon emerged in a flash of light.

"You can have the first move," James offered.

"Alright. Spheal, get in close and use Powder Snow!"

Spheal nodded as best it could, before beginning to roll towards Squirtle at a rapid pace.

"Wait for it..." James ordered, Squirtle standing its ground in a defensive posture. Spheal continued to roll, suddenly springing up into the air and looking down at Squirtle, the Powder Snow attack bursting from its mouth in a flurry of snowflakes. "Now! Tackle!"

Squirtle dove through the Powder Snow attack, catching both Emily and Spheal off-guard and slamming into Spheal shoulder-first with a powerful Tackle. Spheal flew backwards through the air, hitting the ground and bouncing slightly before rolling back to a standing position.

"Keep up the pressure, Squirtle! Bubble!"

A spray of bubbles suddenly rushed towards Spheal, courtesy of Squirtle. Spheal dodged out of the way of some of the bubbles, but others popped on its body, stinging it slightly.

"Spheal! Get out of the way of the bubbles and use Water Gun!"

Spheal rolled to the left, dodging around the spray of bubbles before letting a powerful jet of water fly, hitting Squirtle in the face and making it stumble backwards.

"Finish it off, Squirtle! Charge it and use Tackle again!"

Shaking off the effects of the Water Gun attack, Squirtle ran full-speed at Spheal, diving and unleashing another powerful body blow that sent Spheal rolling backwards across the arena, coming to a stop at Emily's feet. It tried to get up, but instead sank back to the ground, exhausted.

"Spheal!" Emily cried, kneeling down to check on her Pokémon. It gave a weak cry, looking up at her with a sad face. "Don't feel bad...you did fine," she said, taking out a Potion from her backpack and helping Spheal drink it down. Spheal stood back up slowly a moment later, and Emily recalled it back into its Poké Ball.

"Nice match," James said, having also recalled Squirtle. Stepping over, he extended a hand to Emily, helping the girl back to her feet.

"Thanks..." she replied. "Same."

"Thanks. I think we've both got a lot of work to do if we want to challenge the Elite Four, don't you think?" James asked, looking out towards the route leading back to Viridian City.

"Yeah..." Emily murmured, having taken quite a fascination with the ground all of a sudden. Even though James couldn't see her face, he could hear the hurt in her voice. Walking back over to Emily, James put an arm around her shoulder.

"Hey, don't feel bad. It was your first battle. We can't all expect to be perfect from the get-go, right?"

"I guess you're right," Emily said reluctantly, looking up. "Guess we should get moving, then?"

"Good idea," James agreed, the two trainers beginning to head back towards Viridian City.

* * *

James and Emily were glad to be able to enjoy a nice, relaxing walk back along Route 1, a glaring contrast to their sprint along the route the previous day. Emily was enjoying the sights and sounds of the area, when a faint rustling in the bushes caught her attention. Stepping over slowly, she bent down to the bushes...

"Ah!"

...And was promptly scared by a group of Pidgey emerging from the bush, most of the Pokémon taking flight and running away. One Pidgey, however, stayed behind, chirping a challenge to Emily. Quickly, Emily pulled out her Pokédex, pointing it at the small bird.

* * *

_**Pidgey**__**  
Type: Normal/Flying**__**  
Level: 5**__**  
Info: Pidgey, the Tiny Bird Pokémon. A common sight in forests and woods. It flaps its wings at ground level to kick up blinding sand.**__**  
Attacks: Unknown.

* * *

**_"Spheal, let's do it!" Emily called, releasing her Pokémon in a flash of light. "Use Powder Snow!"

Aiming carefully, Spheal released a burst of snowflakes from its mouth, headed straight for the enemy Pidgey. The small bird took flight, however, causing most of the attack to miss. A tiny bit of its left wing was frosted over, however. Diving back to the ground, the Pokémon began to flap its wings, kicking up sand and dirt into the face of Spheal, who let out a cry at the sudden blindness. Taking advantage, the Pidgey then ran at Spheal, toppling him with a Tackle attack before flying back into the air.

"Spheal, you've gotta shake it off! Try a Water Gun, and aim it high!"

Following Emily's command, Spheal blasted a jet of water high into the air, which Pidgey swiftly evaded. As it came back down for another Tackle attack, Emily gave her next command.

"Another Water Gun, straight ahead!"

This time, the Pokémon could not avoid the powerful stream of water, and fell to the ground, dazed.

"Alright!" Emily shouted, pulling an empty Poké Ball from her belt. Throwing it at the Pidgey, Emily watched eagerly as it sucked the Pokémon in, wobbling once, twice, three times, four times...before finally stopping, the button on the front flashing red to signify a capture.

"Congratulations," James said, smiling. "How does it feel to make your first catch?"

"Great!" Emily replied, stepping over and picking up the Poké Ball containing her Pidgey before turning back to Spheal. "Great job, Spheal! Return!" As the Poké Ball reabsorbed Spheal in a flash of red light, Emily turned to James. "We should hurry and get back to Viridian...I really need to heal both of my Pokémon."

"Squirtle could stand to be healed, too," James agreed. "Let's get going." Quickly, the two trainers began to run back towards Viridian City.

A while later, Emily and James stepped back into Viridian City, tired from the running. Like before, they had run nearly the entire length of Route 1. Needless to say, both of the trainers wanted to sit down and rest.

"There's the Pokémon Center," James said, pointing to a large white building with a red roof.

"Finally," Emily added. "Maybe we can sit down for once," she joked.

"Maybe," James agreed, laughing. "Come on."

* * *

Stepping inside the Pokémon Center, Emily and James were immediately greeted by a young woman with red hair, Nurse Joy. Nurse Joy's family ran the Pokémon Centers in each town. Strangely enough, all of the nurses seemed to look exactly alike.

"Can I help you?" Nurse Joy asked, looking at the two trainers.

"We'd like to get our Pokémon healed, please," Emily said, handing over the two Poké Balls containing Spheal and Pidgey. James also handed over two Poké Balls, and the nurse nodded.

"It'll be a few minutes," the nurse replied. "Feel free to stay until they're healed."

"Sounds good," James said, nodding and taking a seat, Emily sitting down beside him.

"I didn't know you already had another Pokémon," Emily said, looking over at James.

"It's a Caterpie," he replied. "I caught it in Viridian Forest while I was on the way to Pewter City."

"Oh...why didn't you use it when we battled back at Pallet Town?" Emily questioned.

"Caterpie wouldn't have been able to stand up to Spheal," James said. "That's why I used Squirtle. Squirtle might have been at a higher level than Spheal, but he still had to deal with Spheal resisting most of his attacks."

"I see..." Emily murmured.

"Emily Nagata, James Marien?" the nurse said suddenly, interrupting the conversation. "Your Pokémon have been fully healed." Standing up, Emily and James stepped over to the desk, reclaiming their Poké Balls from a small tray.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," James said. Emily also nodded her thanks, as the nurse stepped away, beginning to deal with other matters.

"Think we should head to the local shop and get some supplies?" James asked, as the two trainers exited the Center.

"Probably a good idea," Emily replied, nodding. "It can't hurt, at any rate." With that said, the two trainers walked off towards the west side of town, headed to the Viridian City Pokémon Mart.

* * *

Once again, I apologize for the shortness of this chapter. Next chapter, Emily and James find themselves at Pewter City, and challenge Brock for the Boulder Badge! As always, please read and review!


	3. Chapter 3: Rivalry

I'm very sorry that it took me so long to get back to this story. I've been through college work, working on my other stories, and a lot of sickness before being able to get back into the swing of writing this story. Hopefully, I will be able to find some way to get into a system of writing once again. I should be going back and nitpicking the formatting of earlier chapters to match this one, as well.

* * *

_Chapter 3: Rivalry_

* * *

The Pokémon Mart.

A small white building with a blue roof, it's a standard part of a trainer's lifestyle. It carries items for healing, for capturing Pokémon, and even items for helping to train your Pokémon in battle. Essentially, it's a one-stop shop for most trainers on their journeys, though bigger shops exist in some cities such as Celadon City.

However, one might say that seeing a kid in a light blue shirt and pants with white designs, black and light blue boots, and spiky white hair standing at one side of the building, staring through a window is not a typical part of a trainer's lifestyle.

Both Emily and James noticed the boy staring into the Pokémon Mart, but only James decided to ignore it. Emily, on the other hand, walked up to the boy, tapping him on the shoulder.

"Hey...what are you doing, looking into the Pokémon Mart like that?"

Calmly, and without turning to face Emily, the boy gave her his answer.

"Gonna steal something. Wanna help?"

The look on Emily's face almost looked like someone slapped her across the face with a Magikarp.

"Why don't you just buy it, like everyone else does?" she said, a slight bit angry at what the kid said.

The response that he gave was both very clear, and painfully blunt.

"Cause that would require money, duh."

Emily fumbled for words, clearly not expecting the answer she just received, as James walked over to the duo, wondering why Emily was taking so long.

"It's alright if you don't get it," the boy said, shaking his head in something resembling disappointment.

"Who are you?" Emily asked, trying to change the subject and ignore the kid's earlier comments.

"The name's Lein Basch," he replied, finally turning away from the window. Emily could now see two Poke Balls, clearly visible on the front of the boy's belt. "I'm planning on working to become a Gym Leader."

"Stealing is an odd way of going about it, don't you think?" Emily retorted, causing James to fold his arms. Lein just rolled his eyes.

"Well, I told you my name," he said, diverting the subject from his imminent stealing once again. "Before I trash you, what's yours?"

"Emily Nagata..." she muttered, before blinking. "Wait, did you just challenge me?"

"Not the fastest Torchic in the race, are you?" Lein quipped, chuckling. "Yes, I did."

"Well, I am a trainer...so I can't back down. You're on!" Emily replied enthusiastically. James glanced at Emily, then Lein, before nodding.

"I guess I'll act as referee, then," he said, shrugging and moving away from the two trainers as they stepped away from each other.

"Two on two battle?" Lein asked. "I'd hate to beat you at anything less than your best."

"Fine by me," Emily replied, growling a little under her breath. _'Who does he think he is...'_

"This will be a two on two battle between Emily Nagata of Viridian City and Lein Basch of..." James stopped at that, looking over at Lein for help.

"Ecruteak City. Johto," Lein replied.

"Lein Basch of Ecruteak City," James continued. "Trainers, ready!"

"Pidgey, let's show him!" Emily commanded, throwing out a Poke Ball to the makeshift field, releasing the Tiny Bird Pokémon in a flash of light.

"Electrike, you're up," Lein said, throwing out his own Poke Ball and releasing a small, green, dog-like Pokémon to the field. Emily pulled out her Pokedex, analyzing the Pokémon with a small 'beep' from the machine.

* * *

_**Electrike  
Type: Electric  
Level: 6  
Info: Electrike, the Lightning Pokémon. Electrike stores electricity in its long body hair. This Pokémon stimulates its leg muscles with electrical charges.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

* * *

"Pidgey, be careful!" Emily shouted, Lein smirking as if he'd already won the first round.

"You can have the first move. Might be the only one you get, you know," Lein said, placing a hand on his hip.

"Pidgey, Sand-Attack!" Emily ordered, watching as the tiny bird flapped its wings quickly, kicking up a cloud of dirt to impede Electrike's vision.

"Electrike, Thunder Wave that pigeon," Lein ordered calmly, watching as Electrike burst through the cloud of dust and created an orb of electricity around itself. The orb suddenly rocketed from Electrike towards Pidgey, and the bird squawked in surprise as it suddenly fell to the ground, wings stiff with the paralysis that the attack inflicted.

"Pidgey!" Emily cried, worried that the tiny bird was injured. Pidgey let out another cry of defiance, however, and Emily nodded, giving her next order. "Tackle it, Pidgey!"

The tiny bird leapt from the ground, smashing into Electrike with all the force it could muster; admittedly, it wasn't much because of the paralysis. Electrike still stumbled slightly, however, stepping back a little and awaiting its next command.

"Show that pesky pigeon a real Tackle attack!"

Obeying its master, Electrike leapt from the ground and hammered its head into Pidgey's feathery body, knocking the bird to the ground once again, dazed. The Pokémon tried to get up, but the paralysis gripped it tightly, and it sunk back to the ground just in time for Electrike to hammer it with another Tackle. This time, it didn't move.

"Pidgey!" Emily yelled again, running up and scooping the small bird into her arms. It gave a weak cry, and she held out its Poké Ball, recalling the injured creature for a much needed rest.

"First point goes to Lein Basch!" James exclaimed, waving a hand towards Lein's side of the field.

"Looks like it's one to zero," Lein commented casually.

"I'm not done yet, you know!" Emily retorted, glaring over in Lein's direction and throwing out a second Poké Ball. "Spheal, let's do it!"

The small seal Pokémon appeared in a flash of light, coinciding with the beam of light from Lein's side as he recalled his Electrike. Quickly, he threw out another Poké Ball to the field.

"Ralts, finish this fight."

A short creature emerged from the Poké Ball, a milky white body covered by what appeared to be drooping green hair, with one small, red semicircle of...something protruding from its skull. If the creature had legs, they couldn't be seen, the bottom of the creature's body just as whole as the rest, except for a slightly flowing bit at the very end_**  
**_

* * *

_**Ralts**__**  
Type: Psychic**__**  
Level: 7**__**  
Info: Ralts, the Feeling Pokémon. Ralts has the ability to sense the emotions of people. If its trainer is in a cheerful mood, this Pokémon grows cheerful and joyous in the same way.**__**  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

* * *

"Psychic type, huh..." Emily muttered, looking at Spheal. "Spheal, Powder Snow! Don't let this thing get a chance to move!"

The snowy attack was gathered and fired in an instant, a small wave of cold circling Ralts and freezing it to the bone. However, the small Pokémon merely shivered a bit and shook off the attack, hopping once in place to dislodge a bit of frost from its head.

"Ralts, Confusion."

And then the creature's head began to shine with purple energy, the same energy gripping Spheal after a moment, causing the seal Pokémon to flinch in shock, as if it had just been physically attacked.

"Get in close and use Water Gun!"

Neither Emily nor Spheal were deterred by the psychic-based attack, the latter rolling up into a ball and moving close to Ralts before unleashing a powerful burst of water that struck the Pokémon squarely in the face, sending it onto its back.

"Ralts, don't let that thing push you around! Give it another Confusion attack!" Lein called, the order sending Ralts scrambling to its 'feet' once more, followed by the same psychic energy surrounding itself and Spheal once again. This time, however, Spheal fell back under the assault, a cry of pain from the Pokémon showing the mental pain from the attack.

"Spheal, watch out! Try another Powder Snow!" Emily ordered, Spheal weakly shaking off the attack and launching another flurry of flakes at the Ralts in front of it.

"Dodge and send one last Confusion," Lein replied, causing Ralts to leap out of the way of the attack and charge up for another Confusion, the mental attack striking Spheal for the third, and what would be final, time as the Pokémon rolled onto its back, unable to fight anymore.

"Oh no, Spheal!" Emily cried, running over to comfort her fallen friend.

"Second point goes to Lein Basch! The winner of this match is Lein Basch from Ecruteak City!" James called, walking over to Emily as well to check on Spheal and Pidgey. Lein recalled his Ralts and walked over as well, stopping in front of Emily.

"I believe you owe me something."

Emily grumbled, but nodded, clipping the Poké Ball with Spheal back onto her belt before pulling out a small wad of bills, counting out what appeared to be half of them, and handing them to Lein.

"Fine...take it," she muttered, causing the boy to smile.

One of the more interesting aspects of training was what Emily had just demonstrated - if you lost a battle to another trainer, the loser was obligated to give half their current money to the winner. It was quite ingenious, really, for two reasons. One, the losing trainer could never really 'go broke', as they would never be forced to give over their last bit of money. Two, if a trainer needed money, all they had to do was challenge and win a few battles. Since you obviously couldn't work while on a journey, this 'honor system' of sorts provided for an interesting way of keeping trainers competitive and well-supplied at the same time.

"Thanks. Looks like I can go buy that stuff after all," he commented, beginning to walk away and inside the Pokémon Mart. "See ya."

"You okay?" James asked Emily, clearly concerned at the downcast look on his friend's face.

"...I'll be fine," she responded after a moment, heading towards the Pokémon Center once again to get her Pokémon healed.

* * *

"Back so soon, Miss Nagata?" Nurse Joy asked, as Emily and James walked back into the Pokémon Center.

"Trainer battle," Emily replied simply, handing her Poké Balls to the nurse. "I need to get Spheal and Pidgey healed again, please."

"Of course," Nurse Joy said, placing the two Poké Balls on a tray and then into a machine next to her. The machine came to life as Nurse Joy pressed several buttons on it, and a light flashed over each of the Poké Balls for several seconds. Quickly, Nurse Joy shut the machine off and removed the Poké Balls, handing them back to Emily.

"That was fast," Emily stated, causing Nurse Joy to nod.

"Our machine was acting up earlier, so we had to take them into the back and use the machines there for backup purposes. Add in the fact that several trainers needed to get their Pokémon healed at once, and things backed up for a while," Nurse Joy said.

"Understandable," James commented. "Lots of trainers started on their journeys this week, so I can imagine the situation."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Emily said, nodding to the red-haired nurse before turning to James. "I still have to go to the Pokémon Mart before we leave."

"I know. If we hurry, we can get through Viridian Forest in the next hour or two," James remarked, holding open the door as Emily exited, followed closely by James.

* * *

The two walked the several dozen feet down to the Pokémon Mart in silence, pushing open the door to the building and stepping inside as a bell rang with a 'ding.' Inside the store, shelves lined the walls, filled with everything a trainer would need. From Poké Balls, to Potions, to battle-enhancing items like X Attack and X Defend, Pokémon Marts usually carried a wide variety of things for both trainers and Pokémon alike.

"Can I help you?" a short man asked, with a blue apron bearing a Poké Ball design over his white shirt and tan pants.

"We're just looking around," James replied, causing the man to nod.

"Let's see...a few Poké Balls and Potions should be a good idea for now, don't you think?" Emily asked James.

"I'd get some Antidotes, too. Maybe a Paralyze Heal or two. Viridian Forest is known for having lots of Bug-type Pokémon," James suggested, causing Emily to nod in affirmation as she turned down one aisle of the shop.

In a few minutes, Emily had gathered the supplies she felt necessary to continue her journey, and stepped up to the register, placing a few Poké Balls and assorted bottles of liquids and sprays down on the counter.

"Let's see...three Poké Balls, three Potions, two Antidotes, and a Paralyze Heal...anything else?" the shopkeeper asked, as Emily shook her head.

"That's it."

Quickly, the man rung up the purchases on the register next to him, turning back to Emily.

"That'll be nineteen dollars, please," the man said, and Emily's face fell a little as she looked at her money, only fifteen of which was left after the battle with Lein. Silently, she moved to put one of the Potions and Poké Balls back, which would bring her under the total amount, before James stopped her.

"I've got it," he said, pulling out a ten dollar bill and handing it over to Emily, who had a somewhat shocked expression on her face.

"James-"

"Don't worry about it. It's no problem," he replied, causing Emily to smile. Taking the money from her friend, she handed it over to the man, along with a ten dollar bill of her own. The shopkeeper smiled, handing her back a dollar, which she promptly handed to James.

"Here...I'll pay you back when I can win some battles," Emily said, feeling a bit embarrassed now at James having to help her so much. As she put her purchases away, she could feel her face turning slightly red as the shopkeeper looked on, and suddenly, she wanted nothing better than to be out of the store and back on the road.

"Thank you," James said to the shopkeeper, Emily doing the same as the two of them exited, the younger girl now glad to be back outside.

"I really appreciate it," Emily said, looking over at James.

"Like I said, don't worry about it. Everyone has a rough time when they first start out," James responded, causing Emily to smile.

"Thanks," Emily said after a moment. "Think we should head towards Viridian Forest now?"

"Not a bad idea. The sooner we get through it, the sooner we can take on Brock."

"I really need to do some training first...even if I do have a Water-type," Emily replied, causing James to nod.

"Brock's a tough opponent. You might have the elemental advantage, but he's got experience and power. As far as I know, he has a Geodude and Onix, but he might use different Pokémon. I'd be ready for anything if I were you," he explained.

"I will," Emily said, as the two of them began to head out of Viridian City and onto Route 2, headed towards Viridian Forest.

* * *

I know I said last chapter that the duo would reach Pewter City, but I've decided to change it up a bit. You got to see the introduction of the typical rival-esque character this chapter; rest assured, this won't be the last you see of him. As always, please read and review.


	4. Chapter 4: Complications

To all my readers, my deepest apologies for not updating this story in so long. I've just found it hard to find inspiration to write lately, with college and a host of other problems cropping up on me. With luck, I can get back into a style of regular updating, even with college about to resume.

* * *

_Chapter 4: Complications_

* * *

Viridian Forest.

The first real test for trainers on their journey, the forest served as a sort of training ground for up-and-coming trainers looking for nothing more than to test their skills against others.

Right now, Emily was in the middle of a battle with another trainer, with her Pidgey up against the opposing trainer's Metapod. What Emily's Pidgey lacked in experience and power, it more than made up for in mobility against the Bug-type Cocoon Pokémon.

"Give it another Tackle, Pidgey!"

"Harden, Metapod!"

Even as the Bug-type stiffened, aware and ready for the incoming attack, the Tiny Bird Pokémon was diving at it, slamming into the Metapod with deceptive force for its small body. The Metapod sagged, weakened severely by the attack, before Emily gave another command.

"One more time, Pidgey!"

The small bird leapt up again, blasting into the Metapod with all the strength it could muster. The Metapod groaned, then fell over, out of the fight for good.

"Metapod!" the trainer cried, kneeling down and looking over his Metapod, before sighing and recalling the beaten Bug-type.

"...Looks like I lost," he commented, before standing up and walking over to Emily, shaking her hand. "Nice match."

"Thanks. You did pretty well yourself. That's one strong Metapod," she said, the other trainer rubbing his head a little at the compliment, before pulling out several bills and handing them over to Emily as prize money. Emily folded the bills carefully, putting them away, before walking over towards another group of trees surrounding a small clearing. Inside, James was battling another trainer, which looked to be an even match.

"Kakuna, give it a Poison Sting!" his opponent, a small girl with a blue sun-dress and white sandals, yelled. Her Kakuna bounced from its position, jumping and stabbing out at James' Caterpie quickly.

"Counter with a String Shot!"

James wasted no time in giving the command, his Caterpie diving out of the way as the Kakuna stabbed nothing but grassy ground, before it turned and sprayed a stream of sticky material into the Kakuna's face. The Kakuna screeched, now mostly blind, and James didn't even have to give the command for Caterpie to attack. Caterpie ran and leapt up at Kakuna in a strong Tackle attack, knocking the opposing Bug-type onto the ground in a heap.

"Nice work, Caterpie!" James exclaimed, as the girl recalled her Kakuna. Before he could recall his Caterpie, however, it stiffened as a white light began to shine and engulf the Pokémon's form.

"What...Caterpie, you're evolving already...?" James asked, mostly to himself, as he watched the Pokémon's evolution with a smile. The light shifted, changing shape, before dimming to reveal a new Pokémon in Caterpie's place - its next stage evolution, Metapod.

* * *

_**Metapod**__**  
Type: Bug**__**  
Level: 7**__**  
Info: Metapod, the Cocoon Pokémon. Its shell is as hard as an iron slab. A Metapod does not move very much because it is preparing its soft innards for evolution inside the shell.**__**  
Attacks: Tackle, String Shot, Harden.

* * *

**_"Alright, Metapod! Way to go!" James shouted, running over to Metapod quickly and kneeling down to the Pokémon.

"Meta-metapod!" it said happily, voicing its own excitement at evolution.

"Before you know it, you'll be flying through the sky as a Butterfree," James said, smiling, before recalling the Pokémon and standing to face the opposing trainer. Congratulating him on a good fight, the girl also gave James some prize money before walking off towards Viridian City.

"Looks like you're doing pretty well," Emily commented, looking over at James with a grin. James just grinned back.

"Could say the same for you," he responded, walking back over to Emily. "Ready to get going for Pewter again?"

"Oh yeah," Emily replied, clenching her fist. "I can't wait to take on Brock and get my first badge!"

Shifting her backpack on her shoulder, Emily began to follow James through the path leading towards Pewter City.

* * *

Several minutes later, the two friends found themselves in a deeper part of the forest, a part where the trees blocked out more of the sunlight from above, giving the whole area a dimmer appearance.

"How much farther, James?" Emily asked, looking around for any wild Pokémon that might be around.

"Not much farther. About another ten minutes or so," James responded, looking back at his companion. A rustling in the trees gathered their attention moments later, the two friends looking around eagerly to see if it was a wild Pokémon hiding out...before a female voice broke the silence.

"Prepare for trouble..."

Laughter broke through the area a second later, and the two companions looked forward just in time to see a figure leap out from the trees, chuckling softly to herself.

"I never did like the rest of the motto," she said, smirking.

Now out of the trees, the figure was revealed to Emily and James to be a young girl in her mid-teens, dressed in fairly strange attire for a traveler. A revealing, light black top covered the girl's chest, with a small and darker black jacket over it. Low-cut, dark black capri pants covered the girl's legs, along with a pair of black, ankle-length boots, but the whole ensemble was overshadowed by the full-length, dark black trenchcoat that the girl was wearing. Perhaps the strangest part of her attire was her hair, covered partly by a hood attached to the smaller jacket, but still revealed to be long enough to fall all the way down her back in a vibrant shade of pink.

"Allow me to make my own," she continued, clearing her throat softly. "Prepare yourselves for trouble, for you will meet defeat at my hand. We will battle in double, for absolute victory does Team Rocket demand."

"Team Rocket..." James growled, looking ahead at the girl.

Team Rocket. A nationwide organization devoted to nothing other than the stealing of rare and valuable Pokémon. Team Rocket had been around practically as long as organized Pokémon training had, and generally caused no end of trouble for new and experienced trainers alike. Very few people knew who the real head of Team Rocket was, and those that did were sworn to secrecy...else they find themselves in more trouble than they could possibly imagine.

"Glad someone recognizes the name," the girl said, looking back at Emily and James. "I suppose I'll introduce myself before I make off with all your Pokémon. Shinobi Liana is the name, and you had better remember it. Of course, in about three minutes, I don't think you'll ever be able to forget it."

"That's what you think," James said defiantly, grabbing a Poké Ball from his belt. Emily did the same, and as one, they threw out their Pokémon to the field.

"Pidgey, let's do it!"

"Metapod, you're up!"

Shinobi looked over the two Pokémon for a minute...before smirking.

"That's it? You're outmatched by a long shot, kids. Spinarak, Ninjask, take them down!"

Throwing out two Poké Balls in front of her, Shinobi watched as her two Pokémon appear in front of her. One was a small, green, spider-esque creature, with black markings on its abdomen. The other was a flying creature resembling a wasp or hornet, with thin wings and claw-like arms.

* * *

_**Spinarak  
Type: Bug/Poison  
Level: 21  
Info: Spinarak, the String Spit Pokémon. The web it spins can be considered its second nervous system. It is said that a Spinarak determines its prey by the tiny vibrations it feels through the web.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

* * *

_**Ninjask**__**  
Type: Bug/Flying**__**  
Level: 22**__**  
Info: Ninjask, the Ninja Pokémon. Ninjask moves around at such a high speed that it cannot be seen, even while its crying can be clearly heard. For that reason, this Pokémon was long believed to be invisible.**__**  
Attacks: Unknown.

* * *

**_"Metapod, be careful! These things are a lot stronger than we are!" James yelled, checking over the information on his Pokédex.

"We can't just give up, James!" Emily yelled, before turning to Pidgey. "Give them a Sand-Attack, Pidgey!

"Metapod, String Shot!" James also commanded, the two Pokémon leaping into action.

"Ninjask, dodge and Fury Cutter! Spinarak, Night Shade the bug!"

Shinobi's Ninjask was little more than a blur as it flew around the stream of sand that Pidgey shook up, before appearing in front of the tiny bird and delivering a powerful strike that sent the bird flying.

"Pidgey!"

Even as Pidgey was being attacked, Spinarak stood firm in the face of Metapod's String Shot, eyes glowing as it delivered a fierce, Ghost-type Night Shade attack to the Cocoon Pokémon. Metapod flinched badly from the power of the attack, shrinking back and leaving itself almost defenseless for the next attack.

"Hang in there, Metapod!"

"Spinarak, Poison Sting on the bird! Ninjask, another Fury Cutter on that bug!"

Pidgey, still reeling from the Fury Cutter, could do little to prevent the Spinarak from running over and stabbing it quickly with a poison-tipped barb. The small Pokémon fell over, unable to continue the fight, even as Metapod received a Fury Cutter from the lightning-fast Ninjask. It too sank to the ground, leaving Emily and James both stunned at the power and speed of Shinobi's two Pokémon.

"Squirtle, you're on!" James yelled, recalling his beaten Metapod and sending out his Water-type starter.

"Spheal, let's take her down!" Emily called, sending out her starter as well as she called Pidgey back into its Poké Ball.

"Now that's more like it," Shinobi said, looking over at the two Pokémon before recalling her own two. "Sneasel, Haunter, teach those two a lesson!"

Two more Poké Balls flew from Shinobi's hands, releasing two more intimidating-looking Pokémon. One resembled a bipedal weasel of sorts, with sharpened front claws and short, pointed ears. The other could be accurately described as nothing more than a ghost, with a purple upper body and disembodied hands floating in the air.

* * *

_**Sneasel**__**  
Type: Dark/Ice**__**  
Level: 24**__**  
Info: Sneasel, the Sharp Claw Pokémon. A Sneasel scales trees by punching its hooked claws into the bark. It seeks out unguarded nests and steals eggs for food while the parents are away.**__**  
Attacks: Unknown.

* * *

**__**Haunter**__**  
Type: Ghost/Poison**__**  
Level: 26**__**  
Info: Haunter, the Gas Pokémon. If a Haunter beckons you while it is floating in darkness, don't approach it. This Pokémon will try to lick you with its tongue and steal your life away.**__**  
Attacks: Unknown.

* * *

**_James looked at the information, and paled slightly.

'_These are stronger than the last two...'_

"Squirtle! Bubble attack on Haunter!"

"Spheal, hit Haunter with a Water Gun!"

A torrent of bubbles and a powerful jet of water blasted towards Haunter, who shrugged off the bubbles easily, but flinched a little at the power behind the Water Gun. Sneasel, however, had no attacks directed at it to worry about...a costly mistake by the two young trainers.

"Sneasel, Faint Attack that Squirtle!"

Sneasel's body seemed to disappear, before reappearing right in front of Squirtle. Lashing out with a powerful strike from its claws, Sneasel sent the Tiny Turtle Pokémon tumbling across the ground before turning to Spheal.

"Another Water Gun, Spheal!"

Just in time to get a Water Gun to the face that left it sputtering, if mostly uninjured.

"Haunter, take that Spheal out with Shadow Punch!"

Diving down towards Spheal, Haunter threw out a punch glowing with purple energy that Spheal had no chance to avoid. The punch crashed into Spheal hard, sending it rolling across the ground with a cry of pain, out of the fight in one strike.

"Spheal! No!" Emily cried, running over to her Pokémon to check on it. Spheal, luckily, was fine, but was in no shape to fight any more.

"Sneasel, finish off the Squirtle with Quick Attack!" Shinobi commanded, right before Sneasel was engulfed in a hail of Bubbles from the turtle Pokémon. Like Haunter, however, Sneasel shook off the light attack before dashing at Squirtle at high-speed, ramming into it hard and sending it flying.

"Squirtle!" James yelled, kneeling down to check on Squirtle. Squirtle, like Spheal, wasn't seriously injured, but it was in no condition to fight.

"And that's that," Shinobi said smugly, looking over at the two trainers. "I think you have something that belongs to me."

"They're not your Pokémon!" Emily yelled angrily, recalling her Spheal as James recalled his Squirtle.

"Oh, but they are now," she replied, smirking. "Haunter."

Haunter apparently needed no other command as he flew at Emily and James. Both trainers covered their faces, afraid of an attack, but Haunter merely snatched the Poké Balls from their belts, also taking Squirtle's and Spheal's Poké Balls that the two were still holding, before flying back to Shinobi and dropping them into her hands.

"Excellent work. They may not be the rarest, but the boss should still be pleased," Shinobi commented casually. "Pleasure doing business with you two."

Giving a small, mocking wave, Shinobi recalled Haunter and leapt back into the trees...and a moment later, a dull roaring could be heard, just before a small motorcycle came bursting out of the trees. Turning sharply, it jetted past the trainers, leaving them coughing from dust and exhaust fumes as it sped back through the forest in the direction of Viridian City. Wiping their eyes, Emily and James quickly ran after the speeding motorcycle, headed back towards the city.

"We can't just let her get away with this!" Emily cried, running as hard as she could, with James right in front of her.

"We're not," James replied, glancing back at Emily. "We're going to get our Pokémon back, no matter what!"

The pair kept running, ready to stop at nothing to get their Pokémon - their friends - back, before the sight of someone standing in the middle of the road caused them to slow down. Emily looked more closely at the figure as she approached, and her eyes widened slightly as they began to slow to a stop.

'_Is it...really...'_

As the figure turned around, showing the face of an older teen girl with long, blond hair tied back into a ponytail, Emily's heart skipped a beat as she ran faster.

"Sis! You're back!"

The girl smiled, before waving to Emily and James. Dressed in a black jacket and white tank top, with a pair of long, black pants and white tennis shoes with two black stripes, along with a belt containing a full team of six Pokémon, Elizabeth looked almost exactly like an older version of Emily.

"Emily! Good to see you again," she said, grabbing her sister in a hug and spinning her around. "How's my favorite baby sister?"

"Not good," Emily replied, looking towards the city again. "Some girl on a motorcycle stole our Pokémon! She's a Team Rocket member, and she headed back towards Viridian! We have to go after her!"

Emily looked positively distressed, with James looking quite concerned himself, but more calm. Elizabeth just turned, looking at the slowly dissipating dust cloud left behind by the motorcycle.

"Is that so..." Elizabeth said, looking back towards her sister. "Well, don't worry, sis. Just leave it to me."

Pulling out a Poké Ball, Elizabeth tossed it out to the ground, a flash of light erupting to reveal a powerful-looking Charizard.

"Charizard, think you can you fly us back to Viridian? We've got a Team Rocket member to chase," Elizabeth asked the Pokémon, who snorted a bit in reply, turning its back and bending down for the three to climb on. Emily was the first, followed by James, and then Elizabeth, who nodded to the two younger trainers.

"Hold on tight!" she said, before her Charizard rose up into the air and above the tree line, roaring and flying off towards the small city in the distance.

* * *

Well, Elizabeth makes her first appearance in the story, and most certainly not her last. Emily and James are definitely going to need her help to get their Pokémon back from Team Rocket. As always, please read and review.


	5. Chapter 5: Evening The Odds

My most sincere apologies for neglecting this story for so long. It's not my primary focus at the moment - that being my _Clouded Horizons_ series - and having a difficult semester this past spring hasn't helped the matter. Fortunately, I've dug myself out of the mountain of difficult classes I have to take, and should have more time for writing over the summer.

* * *

_Chapter 5: Evening The Odds_

* * *

Shinobi's day had gone from good, to bad, to downright horrible.

Getting away with two trainers' Pokémon was good. Doing it without any retribution from anyone on the way back was even better.

Hearing a roar, looking up, and seeing a Charizard chasing you from above the tree line? Not so good.

Realizing that the two trainers that you stole from are the ones on said Charizard, along with someone else that must be the owner of the Charizard? Just downright horrible luck.

"I can't believe this..." Shinobi muttered, gunning her engine and speeding up. "Just who do they think they are?"

Shooting over a small hill, Shinobi hit her brakes and turned to the right quickly after landing, hitting a small dirt trail that led deeper into the forest and accelerating once again. In the distance, a clearing could be seen, with what looked like some sort of warehouse sitting squarely in the middle.

* * *

Overhead, James looked down at where Shinobi was heading, his gaze moving ahead of Shinobi's fast-moving motorcycle and noticing the clearing and building that was to be her destination.

"A warehouse...a Team Rocket base? Out here in the forest?" James murmured, looking down towards the building.

"Looks like it," Elizabeth chimed in, glancing down at the building while tracking Shinobi's movements towards it. "No telling how many other Team Rocket members are there...or what they'll do once we get there."

She looked over at Emily and James, and smiled.

"Of course, that won't stop me from trying," she added. "Charizard, take us down in the trees outside the base, please," she ordered, the Pokémon nodding in understanding and beginning to descend. Charizard carefully began to slow, heading towards a spot on the path several dozen feet from the warehouse, before flapping his wings quickly to slow his descent. Clawed feet touched down on the dirt path of the forest, and the three trainers climbed off, Elizabeth turning to the other two.

"You two stay here. I'll leave Charizard here to protect you in case they try anything funny, while I go inside and get your Pokémon back."

"Okay," Emily said, looking at her sister. "Please, sis...be careful."

"I always am," Elizabeth replied, giving her sister a thumbs-up and taking a Poké Ball off her belt. A moment later, she made a run for the warehouse, leaving her sister, James, and her Charizard behind as she advanced.

Strangely enough, to Elizabeth's surprise, there seemed to be no guards patrolling the outside of the building...or any movement at all, for that matter.

'_This isn't right...' _she thought to herself, moving around the building carefully. At the side, she peered around a corner, and spotted a large door that appeared to open upwards, like a garage door. She inched around the corner, looking for a way to open the door, and was rewarded for her efforts with absolutely nothing. As she searched, however, she could hear talking and movement on the other side of the door, and she leapt back around the corner as the door rumbled, beginning to slide open as Elizabeth watched.

"Still don't know what the boss wants with all these weak Pokémon. Shouldn't we be spending our time looking for rare Pokémon, instead of wasting our time with this trash?" a man, his uniform labeling him as just a lowly Rocket Grunt, muttered to his companion, whose uniform labeled him as not a mere Grunt, but a low-level Admin.

"The boss' orders are what matters here, not your sniveling opinion," the Admin countered harshly, narrowing his eyes at the Grunt, who shied back in fear. "If the boss says that we capture specific Pokémon for his needs, then that is what we will do."

Elizabeth had heard enough.

"Blaziken, go!"

The two Rocket members turned quickly towards the sound of Elizabeth's voice, as a Poké Ball flew out from around the corner, opening in a flash of light to reveal the tall, bird-like Pokémon.

"Quick Attack, Blaziken! Knock them out!"

Both the Grunt and the Admin reached for the Poké Balls on their belts, but it was far too little, far too late. Elizabeth's Blaziken closed the distance between them in a heartbeat, and two thumps accompanied the unconscious Rockets' bodies hitting the dirt.

"Good work," Elizabeth said, stepping out from behind the corner and peering at the open door. "Let's get in there and find everyone's Poké Balls."

Blaziken nodded in agreement, and led the way into the warehouse.

* * *

Shinobi was not happy. Understandably so, of course, but that didn't make it any better.

"I can't believe those twerps followed me all the way here..." she repeated, shaking her head and making sure that her Poké Balls were within easy reach. She had immediately alerted the Admins in charge of the base that they were about to have company...however, she didn't realize that Elizabeth had already arrived by the time she had said anything.

Angrily, she stormed towards the storage area for the Poké Balls that they had "liberated" from trainers, as they called it, and threw the door open, an unhappy glare firmly set on her face.

"Hey, what are you two slackers standing around for?!" she yelled, looking at two Grunts on the far side of the room. "Get the truck ready and load up these things!"

"...S-Sure thing, boss," one of the Grunts stammered, beginning to pick up the crates of Poké Balls and carry them towards a large sliding door at the back of the warehouse. The other Grunt headed towards the wall beside the door and slapped a large button, prompting the door to slide towards the opposite wall with a whirring sound.

"Those brats are going to ruin everything," Shinobi muttered, hoping that she had enough time to secure her ill-gotten gains.

* * *

Elizabeth and Blaziken ran through the base as quickly as they could, kicking open doors that unfortunately led to nowhere of importance - no sign of the thief, or Emily and James' Pokémon. In fact, Elizabeth was beginning to wonder if the base was deserted, as they hadn't run across any Team Rocket members except for the two outside. Pushing the thoughts aside, Elizabeth turned another corner, nodding to Blaziken as the bird-like Pokémon smashed a foot into the door ahead of them, crushing it inward and sending it flying off the hinges. The pair ran into the room, noticing that they were getting close by the looks of the room - empty racks lined the walls, which Elizabeth noted were the same type of racks that she had seen in a Team Rocket base before for storing trays or crates of Poké Balls. Another door lay at the back of the room, which Elizabeth guessed either led out of the base, or to another storage room beyond it.

However, they weren't the only ones in the room. Two other figures stood in front of them, obviously having been warned of an intruder in the warehouse. Both were dressed in the traditional, more suit-like attire of Team Rocket Administrators, and looked decidedly pleased to see Elizabeth.

"Looks like we've found the intruder," the first Admin, a tall male with short, dark hair, said to his companion.

"Oh yes, we'll have great fun indeed," the other, a short female with red hair tied back into a ponytail, replied, grinning broadly. As one, the two Rockets grabbed Poké Balls from their belts, lobbing them in front of them to release the Pokémon inside.

"Electrode, go!"

"Weezing, get that girl!"

In a flash of light, the two Pokémon were summoned to the makeshift battleground, the first looking like a large, upside-down Poké Ball with a face, and the second looking like a group of purple gas clouds combined together.

"I don't have time for this..." Elizabeth muttered, reaching behind her back and grabbing Blaziken's Poké Ball. In a flash of light, she recalled the Pokémon, causing the Admins a moment of confusion.

"What, giving up already?" the male Admin taunted. Elizabeth just smiled...a look which managed to be more than a bit unnerving on the 20-year old trainer.

"No, just making my life a bit easier," she countered, reaching behind her back to grab two more Poké Balls from her belt. "Not that this was going to be difficult or anything. Arcanine, Houndoom, take care of these guys!"

Elizabeth threw two Poké Balls of her own to the field, releasing a large, noble-looking canine Pokémon and a smaller, more devilish-looking canine Pokémon into the room.

"Arcanine, Extremespeed! Houndoom, Flamethrower!"

In a blur of motion, the two Fire-type Pokémon attacked, with Arcanine moving quickly enough to almost vanish from sight before slamming into Electrode, sending the Ball Pokémon rolling across the ground in a daze. Houndoom spit a trail of fire from its mouth that engulfed Weezing, searing the Poison-type with the roaring flames and leaving Elizabeth enough time to make a move for the back of the room.

"Hey, get away from there!" the female Admin screeched as Elizabeth ran for the door, only to have Arcanine leap over both of the Admin's heads and land behind them, teeth bared and growling. The Admin paled and stumbled back in fear, nearly falling over even as Elizabeth made it to the door and yanked it open, disappearing into the hallway beyond.

"What a bunch of losers," Elizabeth groaned, running down the hallway as fast as she could manage. She knew her Pokémon could take care of themselves, and she still had half her team left - likely more than enough for anything she ran into here, she reasoned. A flash of light prompted Blaziken's exit from its Poké Ball once again as she reached the door at the end of the hallway, and Elizabeth nodded to it before it kicked the door open, causing the two occupants on the other side - Shinobi and a single Grunt - to turn and look.

"...I'd ask who you are, but by the looks of that Blaziken, I'm going to safely assume your name is the least of my worries," Shinobi said wryly, her face twisting with anger as she looked at Elizabeth.

"You should make this easy on yourself, and give up now," Elizabeth said. "Just hand over what you stole, and turn yourself in."

Shinobi sighed, dramatically, shaking her head at Elizabeth.

"Hero types. You'd think they'd at least be more polite, or at least realistic," she commented, pulling out four Poké Balls and lobbing them over to Elizabeth, who immediately released all four Pokémon inside to verify that they were, indeed, Emily and James' Pokémon. Satisfied, she recalled all four Pokémon, nodding to Shinobi.

"Going to come quietly?" Elizabeth asked.

"I guess I should go ahead and turn myself in," Shinobi said with a shrug...before her lips twisted into a smirk as she grabbed something from her pocket and threw it down, the smoke bomb exploding into a cloud of vision-impairing gas. Elizabeth and Blaziken went to make a move to attempt and detain Shinobi, but the smoke filled the room too quickly for either of them to do anything - well, anything other than hear Shinobi's mocking voice.

"Oh, and as you're having a coughing fit, I should let you know that I've already made off with most of them!" Shinobi called, leaving Elizabeth and Blaziken coughing on the smoke as they tried to fan it away. Elizabeth frowned, even as she tried to regain her senses from the sudden disorientation - something wasn't adding up to her. Team Rocket had always been, for lack of a better word, incompetent. Whoever their leader was, he hadn't done a very good job of organizing the crime syndicate, only seeming to report minor successes and major failures every time Elizabeth had run into them on her own journey.

So what had changed now, making it so that they could get away with major hauls and thievery in broad daylight? Elizabeth decided that she would try and investigate...well, once they finished up here, at least.

"We can't do anything now, Blaziken...let's just get these Poké Balls back to Emily and call the police to deal with this warehouse," Elizabeth said through coughs, tucking the Poké Balls away into a pouch on her belt before beginning to carefully walk out of the room, trying not to bump into things as they went.

As they re-entered the hall, shutting the door behind them to try and keep the smoke from spreading, Elizabeth took out a small cell phone, flipping it open as they approached the door leading back into the previous storage room. Stepping inside the door, Elizabeth found the two Admins backed up against a wall, more or less, being watched over by both Arcanine and Houndoom. The former looked sick, likely from the results of a poisonous attack by the Admins, while Houndoom sat with a scowling expression focused on the two trapped Rockets.

"Are you okay, you two?" Elizabeth asked as she entered, a question that was answered by a gruff sound from Houndoom that Elizabeth took as a 'yes,' and a whimper from Arcanine. Taking Blaziken back into its Poké Ball, Elizabeth replaced the device on her belt and began to rummage around in a pouch attached to her side, digging out two large, light yellow bottles of some sort of liquid. Elizabeth carefully let her Pokémon drink the Full Restore mixtures, watching as Arcanine slowly got back to a standing position as the medicine took effect. That taken care off, Elizabeth dialed a number and held the phone to her ear, getting an answer almost immediately.

The two Admins could do nothing but listen and glare threateningly as Elizabeth proceeded to call the Viridian City police on them. Elizabeth gave the approximate location of the base as well as explaining that a Grunt had escaped with stolen Poké Balls, though she didn't know how many - a fact that made both Rockets smirk, despite their current situation.

"You two just sit tight," she said with a grin, putting her phone away.. "I've got some business to take care of at the moment."

With that, Elizabeth recalled Blaziken into its Poké Ball, leaving Arcanine and Houndoom with the two captured Rocket Admins.

* * *

Emily wasted no time running towards her sister as she saw Elizabeth step out of the Team Rocket base, dashing towards her and almost skidding to a stop right in front of her.

"Are you okay?" she asked almost immediately, causing Elizabeth to nod.

"It'll take more than a Team Rocket base to beat me," Elizabeth said with a giggle. "After all, I _did _go through three different Pokémon Leagues, you know." A moment later, she reached into the pouch on her side and pulled out the four Poké Balls belonging to Emily and James. Emily threw her arms around Elizabeth with a shout of joy as soon as she saw the devices.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she exclaimed, causing Elizabeth to simply start laughing as Emily took the two Poké Balls that belonged to her and put them back on her belt.

"Don't mention it," she replied, patting her sister on the back. "After all, I'd hate to see your journey end before it even gets started."

"Thank you," James suddenly said, having walked up while the two were talking, albeit much more calmly than Emily. Elizabeth's Charizard also stood behind him, watching the entire scene silently. "I appreciate it. We wouldn't have been able to do much about this without your help," he continued, as Emily handed him his Poké Balls as well.

"Like I said, don't worry about it," Elizabeth repeated, looking over at James. "I just got back home, and I was trying to see Emily before she got too far out on the road. That Team Rocket member was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," she said with a giggle.

"You came all the way back from Mossdeep to see me?" Emily asked, a bit surprised.

"Of course! What was I supposed to do, miss my little sister leaving town to take on the League here? Not on your life," Elizabeth countered.

"Mom told you where I was?" Emily continued, a little curious.

"Yeah," Elizabeth answered. "We talked a bit about how you'd reacted when you got the Spheal I sent you, how things were with me over in Hoenn, that sort of thing, and then I headed out to try and find you. I didn't expect to find you the way I did, though," the older trainer admitted. Emily nodded, before glancing down at a watch on her wrist and gasping slightly, eyes widening in shock.

"James, we need to get going if we want to make it to Pewter City by tonight!" Emily said quickly, looking at her companion. James glanced at his own watch and nodded, realizing that it was beginning to get late.

"Thanks for the help again, sis," Emily told her sister, looking back towards her. "Are you going back home for tonight?"

"Yeah, I'll be staying for about a week here before I go back to Mossdeep. Be sure to call me when you get to Pewter, okay?" she said, hugging Emily again.

"I will!" Emily replied, waving at her sister as she and James began to walk back down the path and into Viridian Forest once again.

* * *

And the two trainers are back on the road now after that little incident. Next chapter should see the duo dealing with Pewter City and the resident Gym Leader of the town, if not more. As always, please read and review.


	6. Chapter 6: Eyes On The Prize

I'm quite sorry for the severely long wait for this chapter - my inspiration for this story waned significantly, and I was also working on other things, including two of my other stories.

* * *

_Chapter 6: Eyes On The Prize_

* * *

It had taken the trainers no more than an hour to make their way through Viridian Forest, now reunited with their stolen Pokémon thanks to Emily's sister. At the edge of the forest, they had passed through a large building that served as a sort of rest stop for trainers that needed a short break before entering the next city, only about a mile and a half down the road. From the building, however, the city could be seen, sitting at a slightly lower elevation than the land before it.

"Is that Pewter City?" Emily asked, looking out at the small city in the distance. James nodded in response.

"Sure is. It's not a particularly big city, but it's the home of the first Gym Leader we'll be facing - Brock."

"He trains Rock-type Pokémon, right?"

"Yeah. He apparently has a few Steel-types in his lineup now, so you might want to watch out for that. All the Gym Leaders keep changing their lineups each league season to keep trainers guessing. Plus, new Pokémon are constantly being found all over the world, so there are more and more Pokémon for trainers to discover and learn about," James explained as they started walking down towards the city.

"Oh...that's really neat," Emily replied, glancing to her companion. "Did you battle with Brock yet? You seem pretty informed about all of this."

"No, not yet," James answered. "I was planning on doing it a few days ago, but I never got around to it. Then you started your journey, and I figured that we could just go ahead and head to the gym together."

"That's so sweet..." Emily said, causing James' face to turn slightly red at the compliment.

"Stop, you're embarrassing me..."

Emily giggled, causing James to turn even redder as they continued along the trail towards Pewter.

* * *

Around a half hour later, the two trainers found themselves in the small city of Pewter, with Emily promptly taking in the sights and surroundings with excitement. Pewter had a reputation for being known as the "Stone-Gray City," and it showed quite a bit in the general style and design of the city. The buildings, while generally no taller than two or three stories, shared similar styles of design and coloration, with hues of gray, red, and white being put to strangely effective use to create an attractive flair.

"Well?" James asked, glancing at his companion. "Nice place, huh?"

"They know how to make the most of what they have," Emily commented, gesturing to the buildings with a giggle.

"Pewter's definitely a lot bigger than it used to be, though. You should go check out the museum here sometime - they've got all sorts of pictures of the city from decades ago, artifacts found while renovating the buildings, things like that. I've heard they even have a few Pokémon fossils on display that were dug up during construction," James explained.

"Wow...really? I wanna go see!" Emily said happily, her full attention now on the museum's potential treasures.

"Don't you want to challenge Brock first?" James queried, and Emily stopped.

"That's right...do you think our Pokémon are strong enough, though?" she countered, causing James to pull out his Pokédex.

"Well, let's take a look..." he said quietly, taking out the two Poké Balls on his belt and aiming the Pokédex at them. The machine beeped quietly as it scanned the two spheres, and information scrolled across the screen for James even as Emily began to do the same. "Looks like my Pokémon are only about 9th level...what about you?"

"Just 7th level..." Emily replied, somewhat sullenly. The whole fiasco with Team Rocket had really cut into their chance to train, she noticed.

"Brock's Pokémon are somewhere around 12th level, if I remember right," James started, looking at the young girl. "Looks like we should do a bit of training first if we really want to stand a chance, type advantage or not."

Emily nodded her assent to the idea quickly, and James turned to begin heading back down the street with Emily right behind him. Neither of them noticed, however, the familiar young boy that was watching them with a look of curiosity.

"Wonder why they're so late...?" Lein Basch wondered to himself, before shrugging. "Might as well just ask."

His course of action now set, Lein calmly began to follow the two trainers down the street towards the city exit.

"So, we're heading back to the forest just outside of town?" Emily asked her companion, who nodded.

"There's bound to be some wild Pokémon there that we can catch, and it'll be good practice even if there aren't any Rock-types around," James replied. Neither of them noticed the third figure behind them, though, until he spoke.

"See you took your sweet time getting here, sunshine," Lein said casually from behind the duo. "Enjoy the sights on the way? Viridian Forest is quite nice this time of year, wouldn't you say?"

Emily jumped visibly at the sound, spinning to see the grinning figure of Lein Basch behind the two of them. Sighing, she put a hand over her chest to try and get her breathing back to normal after the sudden shock. "Don't _do_ that!" she exclaimed, looking down at the ground as she calmed herself again.

"It's the thief," James said with a hint of mirth, hiding his surprise under a look of apathy. Lein chuckled, his eyes shining with mischief as he smirked.

"I did pay for it in the end. But that's not the point."

Emily gave a confused look towards Lein, her breathing now under control again. "What's so important that you have to scare the daylights out of me?"

Lein faced Emily, his smirk fading into a simple grin as he watched the female trainer. "It's nothing that you won't manage...well, after a fashion, if our last battle was any indication." Lein thumbed his nose a bit at that, pulling open the flap of his vest to reveal a shiny, metallic object in the shape of a stone - the Boulder Badge from the Pewter City Gym. "Brock isn't a bad guy, once you've figured out a few things. If that Spheal of yours can't beat him, don't even _think _about calling yourself my rival."

Neither of the trainers said anything as they looked at the badge. Apparently, Lein wasn't all bark and no bite as they guessed, figuratively speaking.

"Well, whatever. I'd best be heading off," Lein continued, glancing at a small device on his wrist that James recognized as a Pokénav - mostly used by trainers for navigational features like maps and a compass. "Don't lose to anyone until the next time we fight, got it sunshine?" Glancing over, he looked at James with a smirk on his face once again. "Better take care of her, like a good puppy should."

With a laugh, Lein began to walk down the street in the direction he had come, leaving a somewhat flushed James behind with Emily - though in anger or embarrassment, she couldn't tell.

"I'm gonna take him on the next time we meet and show him what this 'puppy' can do..." James muttered, scowling at the retreating trainer.

"You okay?" Emily asked her friend, causing James to turn to her.

"...Yeah, I'm fine," he said after a moment, shaking off Lein's words. "We should probably get going if we want to get some training in before tonight."

Emily once again nodded her agreement, and the pair quickly resumed their walk towards the exit to the city.

* * *

The evening sun was just beginning to dim in its intensity when Emily and James made their way back into town. The two trainers had spent nearly three hours outside of town, training both their Pokémon and themselves in battles against not only other wild Pokémon in the forest, but against each other in small skirmishes. Emily had held up rather well in all the action, a fact that had surprised the girl at first given her record in battles so far.

"Are you okay?" James asked Emily, noticing her staring at a Poké Ball that she was holding in her hand.

"Yeah...I just...I don't know why he was being so nice all of a sudden," Emily stammered after a moment.

"You mean Lein."

Emily nodded, as she began to think back to what had happened about an hour earlier outside of the town.

* * *

–_Flashback–_

* * *

"_So, we'll meet back in this clearing in about thirty minutes?"_

"_That's the plan."_

_Emily nodded at her friend's words, watching as he smiled and began to walk off into the woods in search of wild Pokémon. Suddenly, Emily realized as her friend walked out of sight, she felt very alone in the forest._

"_Boo."_

_The sound of another voice right behind her nearly made her jump out of her skin, and she spun to see the grinning face of Lein Basch once again, barely suppressing a bout of chuckling at her reaction._

"_Why do you keep scaring me like that?!" she yelped, startled at her sudden and unexpected company._

"_Because it's fun," Lein replied, letting a chuckle escape from his lips as he watched the young girl's face. Emily felt like screaming, but she realized that Lein wanted that - she wouldn't give him the satisfaction. For the second time since seeing Lein in Pewter, she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down._

"_What do you want this time?" she asked, recalling what he'd said to her back in the city._

"_I'm hurt," he countered, putting on a face of mock sadness. "I just thought that you might want to join me at a nice little fishing spot I found out here."_

_That got Emily's attention. Fishing? She'd never been fishing for Pokémon before, though she'd heard about it occasionally. The Cerulean City Gym leader, Misty, was said to be an expert at the sport, and had apparently caught all the Pokémon that she and her sisters used in the Gym battles._

"_I...guess," she said, after a moment of quiet thought. "But I don't have a fishing rod..."_

"_Don't worry about that," Lein replied calmly. "I'll let you borrow mine, sunshine."_

_Emily, not knowing what else to do and caught off-guard by both the offer and Lein's sudden change in personality, quietly followed the male trainer as he made his way through a patch of dense trees and brush. Moving the branches and undergrowth aside, Emily made her way through the path Lein was creating until she saw him stop, just past another group of several, thick bushes._

"_Well, we're here," he said, turning to Emily and sweeping a hand out over the area. "What do you think?"_

_Emily took her time looking around the area, stricken by the beauty and calmness of the small lake that Lein had led her to. The lake, while nothing exceedingly large, was still of a modest size, and Emily could see Magikarp and Goldeen jumping and swimming around in the clear blue water of the lake._

"_How did you find this place?" Emily asked, curious, as she walked over to Lein. Lein didn't answer for a moment, swinging his backpack from his shoulder and beginning to take out a long case from the bag._

"_I found it this morning, while I was training for my match in the Gym. Sort of like what you're doing now, eh, sunshine?"_

_Emily, despite her own feelings, found herself fighting down a blush that threatened to develop at the sound of the nickname._

"_Y-Yeah," she said quietly, looking down to try and hide the faint redness on her cheeks. When she looked up again, Lein was holding a blue and white rod and reel of fairly good quality, and was attaching some sort of device onto the end of the line that looked like a small basket._

"_To keep the Pokémon from getting hurt," Lein explained, noticing her examination of the rod. Withdrawing a small pouch from his bag, he opened it up to reveal something that looked like a dispenser of some sort, which he took and flipped the lid off of calmly. A small, cube-shaped object fell from it, a bright blue color, and he fit it into the basket carefully before throwing the line out into the water. "Pokémon love these things," he continued, holding up the dispenser to show Emily. "Poké Blocks. Specially designed Pokémon food, sort of like candy to them. Tastes horrible to humans, too." _

_Emily had heard of Poké Blocks, but had little experience herself with the Pokémon treat. The commercials on TV that she'd seen equated nicely with what Lein said - candy for Pokémon, something the commercials seemed to love to tout with bright, flashy colors and displays of fun and frolic._

"_Looks like they're hungry," Lein commented, causing Emily to snap out of her thoughts to see Lein pulling on his line, reeling it in little by little as he struggled against whatever was on the other end._

"_Already?" she said, a bit surprised at the speed of the catch._

"_Uh huh," he said offhandedly, letting the line go slack for a moment before reeling harder, the water churning as something began to break the surface. A bit of orange skin heralded the appearance of a small, starfish-like Pokémon, latched tightly onto the small basket containing the Poké Block with all five of its arm-like appendages. It seemed to notice after a moment that it was no longer in the water but rather awkwardly floating on top, and let go of the basket to bob in the water, attention caught by the two trainers on the shore. A flash of light from Lein's belt signaled his Ralts' emergence from its Poké Ball, and Lein smiled as he continued to watch the Staryu._

"_Ralts. You know the drill. Give it a Splash."_

_Emily's momentary confusion at the order gave way to realization as the tiny Psychic Pokémon began to shimmer with energy...energy that quickly latched on to the opposing Water-type and lifted it out of the water momentarily before slamming it down into the lake, sending splashes of water everywhere. The Staryu resurfaced an instant later and tilted its body sideways, flying at Ralts in a clumsy Tackle attack, but the Psychic Pokémon evaded the attack and countered with another Confusion attack, this time sending the Staryu 'face' first into the dirt with a crash. The purple energy continued to glow around the Water-type as Ralts lifted it a second time and threw it...directly into a thrown Poké Ball from Lein that collided with it in mid-air._

_The Poké Ball dropped to the dirt with barely a sound and shook once, twice, three times...before the center of the ball flashed to indicate the successful capture._

"_That was...amazing!" Emily said, managing nothing more than an awed expression as Lein walked over and picked up the Poké Ball from the ground._

"_I'm glad you thought so," he replied with a smile, looking at the Poké Ball for a moment before taking out a Pokédex of his own and aiming the device towards the newly captured Pokémon._

* * *

_**Staryu****  
Type: Water****  
Level: 6****  
Info: Staryu, the Starshape Pokémon. It gathers with others in the night and makes its red core glow on and off with the twinkling stars. It can regenerate limbs if they are severed from its body.  
Attacks: Tackle, Harden, Water Gun.**_

* * *

_Lein put the Pokédex away, then looked over towards Emily with a thoughtful look on his face before he tossed the Poké Ball to her lightly, the female trainer catching it with a startled and surprised expression._

"_And now, he's yours. You seem to like the Water-types anyway," he said with a small smile, watching with some degree of amusement as Emily fumbled for words._

"_I...but...I couldn't take this from you! It's too generous...!" she managed to get out, starting to walk over to Lein to hand it back to him. Lein stopped her by raising a hand, feigning a pained look as he did so._

"_After Ralts worked so hard to get it? If you don't feel comfortable about it, then think of it as a promise."_

"_A promise?"_

"_Call it...a promise of rivalry. I'll expect to be seeing you at the Indigo Plateau for this year's Pokémon League, after all."_

_Emily didn't know what to think...or what to say, for that matter. Her mind had been preoccupied by Lein's change in demeanor before, but now to go so far as to catch a Pokémon for her and just hand it over as a gift? She'd not expected that from the person she'd initially branded as nothing more than a rude thief._

"_Emily! Where are you, Emily?"_

_Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of James' voice calling to her through the trees, and she turned towards the sound, walking closer to try and hear better._

"_James? I'm over here, James!"_

_The sounds of snapping twigs and crunching leaves rang through the area as Emily listened, catching a glimpse of her companion a few moments later as he broke through a group of bushes much as she and Lein had done on their way to the lake._

"_I'm glad you're alright," James said as he caught sight of his friend._ _"Did you find anything...in...teresting..."_

_His voice trailed off as he stared at the lake behind Emily, prompting a smile and a giggle from the girl._

"_It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked, looking over at James._

"_I'll say...you found it while you were searching?"_

"_Well, I didn't find it by myself. Lein helped me find...it..."_

_Now it was Emily's turn to stop in the middle of a statement as she looked to see Lein nowhere in sight - apparently, he'd left when she turned to talk to James._

"_He was just here..."_

* * *

–_End Flashback–_

* * *

"I don't know how I feel about the whole 'rival' thing..." Emily said quietly. "I mean, what did I do to him? Why me?"

"My guess, the Pokémon Mart," James replied, glancing at Emily as they walked.

"You don't really think that's it, do you?" Emily continued. James shrugged.

"Not really, but...who knows, besides Lein. There's no telling what he's thinking."

Neither Emily nor James had noticed how far they had walked in the time they had been talking; both of them looked up to find themselves in front of a large building with a Poké Ball insignia set into the stone above the door. A plaque directly underneath stated, in bold lettering, "Pewter City Gym."

"Do you think we're ready?" she asked James cautiously, glancing up at the Gym plaque and back to James.

"Well, there's only one way to find out, you know," he said with a smile. After a moment's hesitation, Emily smiled and nodded firmly to her companion before grabbing the polished handle of one of the doors and pulling it open, ready for her first Gym challenge.

* * *

Finally, the first Gym showdown. Both Emily and James seem to have the type advantage going in, but will they really have an easy time dealing with Brock? As always, please read and review.


	7. Chapter 7: A Future Set In Stone

Once again, I apologize for the wait. I wrote this chapter, more or less, in barely two days once I found my inspiration to continue again, and I hope that I'll be able to keep going the way I did recently with this.

Begin!

* * *

_Chapter 7: A Future Set In Stone_

* * *

Emily and James were both amazed at the sight of the interior of the Pewter Gym. The building was extremely large, almost certainly the largest building in the city or very close to it. Most of the interior was surrounded by a roughly ten-foot wide path around the entire inside, which encircled a large field designed for the Gym battles themselves. The field was clearly tailored to the Gym Leader's type preference, with large rocks, jutting spires of stone, and what looked like holes or tunnels dotting the floor. Above, bright lights akin to those found in a normal sports gymnasium lined the ceiling to make it easier for the trainers to see, along with a large skylight in the direct center of the roof.

"So this is a Pokemon League Gym..." Emily mused, taking in the surroundings of the building. "Have you ever seen one, James?"

"Nope...this is my first time seeing one too," the boy commented, his eyes moving from the field up towards the roof and the large skylight positioned there. "Nice place...must've cost quite a bit to build, I'd imagine."

"Well, well...I didn't think I'd have anyone dropping by today," a voice said from the opposite side of the large room, snapping the two trainers out of their thoughts. The pair looked over to see a man roughly around twenty years old standing with arms folded at the other end, wearing an orange and gray vest over a short-sleeved brown shirt, as well as a pair of long, green cargo pants and shoes of the same colors as his vest. His fairly short brown hair was spiked up in all directions, still managing to be neat, and his eyes were shut to the point where it appeared he was squinting at the pair of trainers. "How are you two doing?"

"We're fine," Emily replied, looking over at the older man. "What about you?"

"Not too bad, if I do say so myself," the man commented, chuckling a little. "Let me guess - you two must be here to try for the Boulder Badge."

"That's right," James said with a nod. "Are you the Gym leader here?"

"I sure am," the man replied. "The name's Brock."

"I'm James Marien," James said, nodding politely to the older Gym leader.

"Emily Nagata," Emily said, also nodding respectfully towards Brock. The Pewter Gym leader smiled, acknowledging both their words with a kind nod of his own before speaking.

"Are you both ready to challenge me, or do you need some time to prepare?"

"We're both ready," James remarked, looking excited about his first Gym battle. Emily also nodded, showing that she felt ready enough to try as well.

"Well, then, why don't you decide which of you will be going first," Brock said, nodding. "Here at the Pewter Gym, we only hold single battles - some Gyms here in Kanto have started holding double battles, like those in Hoenn, but we don't have those here because of the large number of starting trainers."

"Emily, do you want to go first, or do you want me to go?" James asked, courteously deciding to give his friend the chance to battle first.

"Um...I think I'd like it better if you went first, James. I don't know if I'm ready yet..." Emily said, doubts starting to creep back into her mind as her thoughts wandered back to Viridian Forest.

"I think you'll be fine, Em," he said, "but if you want me to go first, then I will. Cheer up - we'll have our first badges in no time!"

He put a hand on Emily's shoulder to reassure her, grinning at his companion before turning and stepping forward towards a marked box on their side of the arena.

"Ah, so you'll be going first, then?" Brock asked.

"That's right," James replied, nodding. "I'm ready to go whenever you are!" Brock simply smiled and nodded, stepping onto the marked trainer box on his side of the field.

"Well, James, let's get started. I'll give you a taste of what Gym battling is really like!" Brock said, taking one of the Poké Balls from his belt and enlarging it to full size. Another man, this one dressed in a white shirt and black pants, began to walk towards the arena with two small flags in his hand. All sanctioned Kanto Pokémon League Gym matches were required to have a referee overseeing the match at all times in order to ensure fairness, a rule that had been around since the inception of the Kanto League itself.

"This will be an official Gym battle between the challenger, James Marien, and the Pewter Gym leader, Brock, for the Pewter Gym's Boulder Badge. Trainers ready!"

Both Brock and James nodded, and the referee looked between them one final time before raising both flags over his head and bringing them down.

"Begin!"

"Squirtle, start it off!" James yelled, throwing his Poké Ball onto the field and releasing the tiny turtle Pokémon in a flash of light.

"Geodude, you're up!" Brock said, releasing his own starting Pokémon onto the field. It resembled a small rock about the size of a basketball, with two thin arms ending in powerful-looking stone fists on either side and a glowering face. James' Pokédex came out a moment later, and Brock waiting obligingly as the younger trainer began to analyze the new Pokémon.

* * *

_**Geodude****  
Type: Rock/Ground****  
Level: 12****  
Info: Geodude, the Rock Pokémon. It climbs mountain paths using only the power of its arms. Because they look just like boulders lining paths, hikers may step on them without noticing.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

"Give it a Bubble attack!" James wasted no time in giving out his order; he had the type advantage and knew it, but Brock didn't look worried at all. The older Gym leader was probably used to the disadvantage, given that Squirtle was a common starter Pokémon from Pallet Town. A multitude of thick bubbles sprayed from Squirtle's mouth, flying towards Geodude at a higher speed than would be expected due to the mist and foam that held them.

"Defense Curl, quick!" Brock ordered, watching as his Geodude wrapped its arms around itself and curled up into a ball as the bubbles impacted, the water eating away at its rocky skin. A moment later, it unfurled itself, looking a bit weakened but still sturdy, and Brock nodded in satisfaction. "Counter with Rock Throw!"

Geodude floated over to one of the many rock formations on the field and latched onto the top of it with both arms, straining and tearing a large chunk of the rock off after a second of effort. Gripping it with one hand, it hefted it up and then tossed it at Squirtle, punching it with its other hand the moment after it let go. The rock shattered into a group of smaller pieces, and Squirtle barely managed to dodge around one piece before a larger one struck him, sending the small Pokémon tumbling back.

"Squirtle, get behind those rocks and use Bubble again! Don't let it get a clear shot at you!" James said, watching as his Squirtle got up and immediately made for one of the larger stone groupings, only to peek out from around it and send another grouping of foam and bubbles towards the Rock-type. Geodude, for all its defensive prowess and strength, was far too slow to avoid the Water-type attack and wound up taking the spray of bubbles directly this time, arms sagging as it tried to recover.

"Don't give up yet! Rock Tomb!"

James suddenly realized that his strategy was about to backfire on him as Geodude punched the ground beneath it. The rocks beneath Squirtle seemed to come to life of their own accord, thick spires of rock sprouting up nearly directly below Squirtle and sending the small Pokémon tumbling as it was caught up in a half-cage of rock. James grimaced as he pulled Squirtle's Poké Ball back out, pointing it over at the rocks.

"Squirtle, return!" he instructed, watching as the red beam drew his starter back inside its Poké Ball. It wasn't unable to battle just yet, but he knew that he would probably need its strength saved for the next Pokémon, as his remaining two Pokémon were at a disadvantage. "Spearow, go!"

From the Poké Ball emerged a small bird with spiky feathers on its head and similarly-spiked red wings, as well as red three-toed feet with sharp talons. Brock frowned momentarily at the switch, but nodded, realizing what the younger trainer was trying to do.

"Get into the air, Spearow, then Peck it when you can!"

The tiny bird fluttered quickly into the air, its wings easily lifting it up over the rocks in the arena even as Geodude broke off another rock from nearby. Another flurry of small stones came at Spearow, but the bird was too fast and Geodude's throw was too inaccurate for any of the stones to cause much damage. Spearow dove down between the rocks as Brock's Pokémon recovered, and its sharp beak jabbed Geodude directly between its eyes as it raked the Rock-type's body with its talons. Geodude flinched back, then rolled over as Spearow backed off, dazed and out of the fight.

"Geodude is unable to battle. Point for the challenger!" the referee called, holding up a flag in James' direction.

"Nice work," Brock said, speaking both to his Pokémon and James as he calmly recalled it, clipping the Poké Ball back onto his belt and drawing another off. "Time for the second round! Aron, go!"

The flash of light from Brock's second Poké Ball revealed a small Pokémon with a large head and four stubby legs, with the head and most of its body covered in silver armor-like skin. A single, blunt spike protruded from the center of its back, and pale blue eyes peered out from beneath its steel 'helmet.' Just as before, James pulled out his Pokédex to analyze the new arrival.

* * *

_**Aron****  
Type: Steel/Rock  
Level: 14  
Info: Aron, the Iron Armor Pokémon. A Pokémon that is clad in steel armor. A new suit of armor is made when it evolves. The old, discarded armor is salvaged as metal for making iron products.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

"Steel and Rock type..." James mused to himself, putting his Pokédex away. "It'll be hard for Spearow to really hurt it, but I don't want Squirtle to battle again just yet..."

He looked back out towards the battlefield, causing Brock to nod and stand at the ready again.

"Tackle it, Aron!"

The little Pokémon obliged, moving somewhat faster than Geodude despite the heavy steel armor covering its body, and leapt at Spearow head-first as the bird flew back up into the air. Aron could only watch as the tiny bird flew out of its reach again, and it looked innocently back at Brock for another idea.

"Just use Harden, and wait for it to get close," Brock ordered, causing Aron to turn back to face Spearow as its body stiffened and shimmered.

"Try another Peck attack, Spearow!" James yelled, and Spearow responded by diving at Aron quickly and lashing out with beak and talons once again. This time, however, it nearly bounced off of the armor-plated Pokémon with a squawk of surprise, and that gave Aron all the time it needed to launch itself directly into the small bird, knocking it back onto the ground in a heap.

"Spearow is unable to battle. Point for the Gym leader!" the referee announced, watching as James recalled Spearow.

"You did good," James said, reaching back to his belt and pulling out Squirtle's Poké Ball once more. "Squirtle, let's try it again!"

Once again, the small Water-type appeared on the field with an eager cry, looking a bit less fatigued than it did a few minutes earlier.

"Aron, give it a Headbutt!" Brock yelled, watching as the quadrupedal Steel-type lumbered forward with head bowed in preparation like a charging bull.

"Withdraw, then Bubble, Squirtle!"

Squirtle bent down, tucking its arms, legs, and head back inside its shell as it dropped to the ground, right before spraying another stream of bubbles at the charging Pokémon. Aron flinched slightly from the stinging spray of water, but charged right through it and slammed into Squirtle anyway. The small turtle's shell flew like a pinball, ricocheting off of a rock and spinning before coming to a stop.

"Squirtle! Are you okay?" James asked, hoping that the Water-type wasn't too badly injured. He got his response in the form of a weak 'Squirt!' from his companion, and he nodded, seeing that Squirtle was willing to keep going. "Alright, try a Water Gun!"

The turtle's head and limbs popped out from its shell once again, and it tiredly drew itself back to its full height before unleashing a small, yet potent stream of pressurized water towards Brock's Aron. The Steel-type tried to turn and evade, but was caught in the side and spun around by the jet as Squirtle continued to fire, dowsing it with the constant spray. After a few seconds, Squirtle finally relented, and Aron wobbled for a moment before sinking to the ground belly-first, exhausted and battered.

"Aron is unable to battle. The winner of the match is the challenger, James Marien!"

James grinned, running out onto the field and picking up Squirtle happily. "Hear that? We won, pal!" he said eagerly, earning a happy proclamation from his partner as well. "You did great!"

"I'll award you your badge once I'm finished battling with your friend here," Brock stated, watching as James recalled Squirtle and stepped off of the field. "Are you ready for your battle?" he asked Emily, earning a slightly shaky nod from the younger trainer as she stepped towards the trainer box.

"Come on, Emily! You can do it!" James said, hoping to encourage her - after all her recent troubles, she looked like she wanted to run away instead of step up to battle with Brock.

"This will be an official Gym battle between the challenger, Emily Nagata, and the Pewter Gym leader, Brock, for the Pewter Gym's Boulder Badge. Trainers ready!" Just as before, the referee's call echoed across the field, and Brock nodded to the referee with Emily following suit moments later as they both prepared to begin.

"Staryu, let's go!"

"Come on out, Larvitar!"

The familiar orange, star-shaped Pokémon emerged from Emily's Poké Ball, while a completely different creature came from the light released by Brock's own. It was short and somewhat stocky, about a third of the height of a normal person, and looked vaguely reptilian with pale green skin, a sharp-looking spike atop its head, and a stubby tail resembling a pine cone. Angular black markings covered the skin just above and below its eyes, and its belly was covered in dark red scales.

"What is that...?" Emily murmured, reaching for her Pokédex and quietly pointing it at the short Pokémon.

* * *

_**Larvitar  
Type: Rock/Ground  
Level: 12  
Info: Larvitar, the Rock Skin Pokémon. A Larvitar is born deep under the ground. It must eat its way through the soil above and reach the surface for it to see its parents' faces.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Emily digested the information for a moment, looking over at Staryu and then to Larvitar. Being both Rock and Ground type meant that Water-element moves would be greatly effective, so...

"Try a Water Gun!"

Staryu leapt into the air happily before aiming the top point of its body towards Brock's Larvitar, releasing a powerful stream of water that tore up the ground as it angled towards its target. Larvitar nimbly dodged out of the way of the piercing water, moving closer to one of the rock formations even as Brock gave his order.

"Rock Tomb, now!"

"Dodge it, Staryu!" Emily had seen what the move had done to James' Squirtle, and Staryu wasted no time in spinning itself up into the air, out of range of all but one of the spires of rock that emerged from the ground as Larvitar stomped. That one sent it spinning off course, but it quickly corrected its flight in mid-air and landed on one of the taller rock spires around the arena.

"Water Gun, again!"

This time, Emily's Pokémon had a perfect perch to aim from, and its Water Gun was dead accurate. Larvitar was left sputtering in the face of the damaging attack, and Brock quickly tried to make the best of the situation.

"Screech, Larvitar, then another Rock Tomb!"

"Quick, use Rapid Spin!" Emily yelled, realizing what Brock was trying to do - he wanted to put Staryu off-balance, then strike it with a follow-up attack. Larvitar inhaled briefly before letting out an ear-splitting screech, even as Staryu leapt off its rocky ledge and began spinning towards Larvitar. Emily had to cover her ears - noticing as she did that Brock had already done so - but was rewarded by the sight of Staryu shaking in mid-air from the effect of the sound wave, then slamming bodily into the small reptile with all the force its spinning body could muster.

Staryu bounced away from Larvitar, shakily getting back to its 'feet,' while Larvitar staggered for a few steps before falling flat on its face. Emily let out a squeal of surprise - she hadn't expected Staryu to be able to win that easily, even despite the type advantage it held.

"Larvitar is unable to battle. Point for the challenger!" the referee called as Brock pulled Larvitar's empty Poké Ball from his belt.

"That's a quick little Staryu you have there," Brock commented, withdrawing the Rock-type into the sphere and reattaching it before taking off a different one. "But can it stand up to this? Onix, it's your turn!"

Brock threw his second Poké Ball into the arena, releasing a bright flash of light and energy that grew...and continued to grow for a few seconds, finally solidifying into the form of a massive, snake-like Pokémon seemingly made entirely from rocks that towered around twenty feet high. A single tall horn jutted from the top of its head, and it let out a roar from its thick, curved mouth as it loomed over the field. Emily's Pokédex beeped again as she brought it out, silently wondering how any of her Pokémon would be able to stand up to something like what she was now seeing.

* * *

_**Onix  
Type: Rock/Ground  
Level: 14  
Info: Onix, the Rock Snake Pokémon. There is a magnet in its brain that prevents an Onix from losing direction while tunneling. As it grows older, its body becomes steadily rounder and smoother.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

'_It's so big...but it's the same types as the last one,' _Emily thought, looking up at the giant Pokémon. _'I can do this...I can...!'_

"Give it a Water Gun, Staryu!"

"Onix, Tackle it!"

Staryu looked up at the comparatively massive Pokémon for a moment before blasting another spout of water from its topmost point, but Onix paid the water that splashed into its upper body no mind as it crashed down onto Staryu.

"Staryu!" Emily cried, worried that her Pokémon might've been seriously hurt as she watched Onix get up. Staryu was lying flat on the ground, weakly moving but clearly in no shape to battle any further.

"Staryu is unable to battle. Point for the Gym leader!"

"It's okay...you did your best," Emily said quietly, recalling the starfish Pokémon and taking another Poké Ball in hand. "Spheal, let's win this!"

Emily's Poké Ball released the tiny seal-like Pokémon onto the field, who responded by eagerly rolling around and waggling its tiny arms despite the presence of its much larger foe.

"Roll behind those rocks and use Powder Snow!"

"Quick, catch it, Onix! Bind it!"

Onix's bulk belied surprising speed as its tail whipped around, aiming to catch the small Ice-type in its grip, but it rolled and bounced away behind a flat mesa of stone, bouncing up a moment later and releasing a flurry of snow and ice in Onix's direction. The chilling attack caused Onix to bellow in pain, flinching back as the cold temperatures ate away at its body.

"Don't give up, Onix! Rock Throw!"

"Keep moving, Spheal! Don't let it catch you!"

Rocks flew around the area as Onix's tail crashed into a pile of stone nearby Spheal, sending pieces of rock everywhere, but the seal Pokémon was already rolling out of range by the time the rocks began to fly. Again, it bounced into the air, releasing another flurry of Powder Snow at Onix, and the much taller snake was forced to retreat somewhat as bits of frost and ice began to form on the rocks that constituted its body.

"Use Water Gun, Spheal!"

Spheal took full advantage of Onix's momentary retreat in order to hop onto one of the rocks that had been dislocated by Onix's tail moments prior, before releasing a thick spray of water aimed directly at Onix's face. It struck the rock snake directly in the mouth, earning another roar of pain as Spheal moved the jet up to its eyes, carving a very faint line into the rock there and blinding it with the spraying liquid. Spheal finally let the attack drop after a few seconds, and Onix sagged lower to the ground before finally succumbing to the smaller Pokémon's attacks, slumping over with a loud crash onto the rocky ground below.

"Onix is unable to battle. The winner of the match is the challenger, Emily Nagata!"

Emily almost couldn't believe her ears - had she really just won the match? The sight of a defeated Onix being recalled snapped her back into reality, and she cried out happily, practically jumping from the trainer box and running over to where Spheal was still sitting. Without missing a beat, she scooped the small Pokémon up into her arms and twirled around, still shouting happily all the while.

"We did it, we did it, we did it! Did you see that, James? We won!" she squealed, running back over to the sidelines where her friend was waiting. James just laughed good-heartedly, a bit overwhelmed by all of Emily's sudden enthusiasm.

"You certainly did. Congratulations, Em - I know how much this means to you!"

Emily just giggled again, too happy to really put feelings into words at the moment. Behind them, Brock stepped over once again, this time carrying several items in his hands.

"Congratulations, both of you. You've beaten me fair and square, and as such, you've won your first certified Kanto Pokémon League Gym badge - the Boulder Badge," Brock said, placing the largest of the objects in his hands - two small metal cubes of some sort - onto the ground before handing both Emily and James a smaller item. The Boulder Badge, as befitting its name, looked like a small, octagonal boulder in shades of brown and gray with a pin on the back. A moment later, he reached into his pocket before pulling out a small stack of money, handing both Emily and James a share of it.

"You'll need seven more badges before you can compete in the year's League tournament," Brock explained, "so you still have a long way to go, but you're off to a good start. Also, I'd like to give you both one of these, if you don't already have one."

He picked up the metal cubes again, handing one to Emily and James for them to get a better look at it. They were fairly small, around a half foot on each side or so, and contained several prominent features - at the top, a slot that looked like a CD player of some sort, an inset LCD screen and clear panel at the front that showed a small CD spindle inside, and a circular holder that seemed to be for a Poké Ball on the right side, attached by a small metal frame and wiring.

"That is a case specially designed for Technical Machines developed by Saffron City's Silph Company," Brock explained.

"Technical Machines?" Emily asked, examining the metal container with interest. "I've never heard of those...what are they?"

"A Technical Machine - or TM, as it's more commonly known - is capable of teaching a Pokémon a new technique that it wasn't capable of using before. You're both aware that Pokémon can be stored as data, correct?" Emily and James both nodded, prompting Brock to continue. "Well, Silph Company took that a step further, and figured out a method to actually program the knowledge of specific techniques and abilities onto discs, then transfer that data directly to the Pokémon in a similar manner."

Once again, he reached into his pocket, this time producing two brown-colored discs about half the size of a normal CD, each in a plastic protective case. "This particular TM is the thirty-ninth in Silph's line - it'll teach a capable Pokémon one of the moves that you saw my Pokémon using earlier, Rock Tomb. Unfortunately, a TM can be used only one time; it's much simpler and cheaper to create a TM that can be used once over one that can be reused."

"I can't believe there are people who actually figured out how to do all of that..." James said, clearly impressed by the amount of knowledge that Silph's scientists showed in creating the small discs.

"It's remarkable, really, and there's still so much that we don't know," Brock said with a smile. "That's part of the beauty of it, though. There's always more to learn."

"Thank you so much, Brock," Emily said, bowing politely to Brock with James following suit a moment after.

"It's no problem at all," the older trainer replied. "Always a pleasure to see some new faces out to take on the League."

"We should probably get going, Em," James said, looking over at the young girl. "Don't you want to tell your family about your first badge?"

"That's right!" Emily gasped, grabbing James by the hand. "Come on, come on!"

Brock laughed as Emily practically pulled her friend towards the doors of the Gym, waving as he watched the two disappear out of the front doors with little more than a wave - and hastily-spoken 'good bye' - from James. They were an exuberant pair, he thought to himself, but most new trainers were. They'd go far in the future if they kept working at it, too, and he honestly looked forward to seeing them at the League one day, be it this year or the next.

* * *

The most trouble that I had from this chapter came when I decided to find a way to include the TMs into the story. Every game seemed to depict them as something different, and I had to look up a bit of information on anime depictions before I finally figured something out that I liked.

While I tried to make this battle interesting and not _too _one-sided, there's still the very simple fact that neither one would, in-game, really have trouble with Brock's Gym. James had the harder battle out of the pair of them, having only one Water-type with the rest of his team weak to the Rock-type attacks, while Emily had it a bit easier due to both Larvitar and Onix being 4x weak to Water attacks and having two Water-types. As of this chapter, both for my own reference and that of my readers, I'll be putting up information about current teams for Emily and James, possibly other characters that become plot-relevant.

Emily's team:

Spheal - Level 11, Docile nature  
Ability: Thick Fat  
Attacks: Defense Curl, Powder Snow, Growl, Water Gun, Encore

Staryu - Level 10, Hasty nature  
Ability: Natural Cure  
Attacks: Tackle, Harden, Water Gun, Rapid Spin

Pidgey - Level 10, Modest nature  
Ability: Keen Eye  
Attacks: Tackle, Sand-Attack, Gust

James' team:

Squirtle - Level 13, Lonely nature  
Ability: Torrent  
Attacks: Tackle, Tail Whip, Bubble, Withdraw, Water Gun

Spearow - Level 11, Bashful nature  
Ability: Keen Eye  
Attacks: Peck, Growl, Leer

Metapod - Level 9, Lax nature  
Ability: Shed Skin  
Attacks: Tackle, String Shot, Harden

I determined the natures and abilities by random selection; also, I will be using the fourth-generation movesets and attacks in this story. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and as always, please read and review.


	8. Chapter 8: A Mountain of Mysteries

Once again, I apologize for the wait, but I've simply been busy with other things like graduation preparations and work on my other stories. I also simply didn't know what I wanted to do with this chapter for a while, but finally figured it out for the most part.

Enjoy!

* * *

_Chapter 8: A Mountain of Mysteries_

* * *

"...and then, Spheal was all 'whoosh!' and flew out from behind the boulder, then 'splash!' Right in the face of the Onix! It shook the whole place when it fell over, and I couldn't _believe _I'd won!"

Elizabeth, it seemed, couldn't stop laughing over the video stream, but Emily was too happy to worry about whether her sister was laughing in happiness, or at her evocative retelling of the battle with Brock, complete with hand gestures and sound effects. She'd been caught up in her story for several minutes, easily, but Elizabeth didn't mind; in fact, she remembered when she'd once been that excited herself.

"I'm glad you did it, sis," Elizabeth said, finally getting control over her laughter as she spared a glance behind her. A Typhlosion lay curled up on the floor behind where she was sitting like a human-sized cat, and appeared to be asleep - the rest of her team were mostly too large to really fit comfortably inside a small house, or she would've let them stay outside of their Poké Balls longer. "Looks like things are going a bit better now."

Emily nodded excitedly, still grinning ear-to-ear. "Once we got into town, everything went fine, but I'd be happy if I didn't have to go back to Viridian Forest for a while!" she laughed. Elizabeth smiled; it seemed as if the incident with Team Rocket in the forest hadn't dampened her sister's spirit much, if any.

"Where are you headed next? Cerulean?" Elizabeth asked, earning a nod from Emily.

"I think we have to go through Mount Moon first, right?" she remarked, looking over at James, who was out of the way of the video screen.

"It's the shortest way," James replied, studying a map at the table he was sitting at. "We could go around, but that would take a lot longer than if we just went through one of the mountain tunnels."

"There's a Pokémon Center at the base of the mountain, if you go down Route 3, and Cerulean isn't too far on the other side if you take that way," Elizabeth added. "It's the way I went when I headed there, anyway."

"Any advice?" James asked, poking his head into view of the screen.

"Watch out for Zubat," Elizabeth said, a faint smirk lining her face. "They're everywhere, and love to use Leech Life. Better have some Potions on hand, just in case, or maybe even a few Repels."

"Makes sense, since it's the inside of a mountain," James replied. "Any Rock-types there?"

"Some Geodude, maybe the occasional Graveler, but all I ever saw were Geodude. I figure they just stay away from the main tunnels because of how often trainers go through."

"You sure know a lot about Kanto, sis!" Emily said happily, grinning at the video screen.

"I just made notes, kept track of things...some of it's from memory, but mostly just noticeable things. Pokémon Centers are pretty noticeable for us trainers, aren't they?" Elizabeth replied with a laugh. Emily laughed and nodded; she felt like she was almost taking the league-run buildings for granted. It was certainly convenient for trainers, and cut down their travel costs significantly by helping with some of the basic necessities as well as Pokémon healing, which saved money on restorative items for Pokémon in the case of most trainers. That, in turn, allowed them to use money on more important things, such as extra food, travel supplies, and medicine.

"Well, I think we should get going," the younger trainer said somewhat sadly, meeting with a nod from Elizabeth.

"Get out there and get to Cerulean, Emily. And give us a call when you get there, too!"

"Don't worry, I will!" she replied, shouldering her small backpack as she waved to the screen. "Tell Mom I'm alright, will you?"

"Will do," Elizabeth said. With a wave from Emily's sister, the video screen clicked off, going back to a standby mode as she turned to James.

"Ready to go?" she asked, earning a quick nod as James started to fold up the map he had lying in front of him before stuffing it back in his own bag.

"Shouldn't be but a few miles from here to Mount Moon, if the map's right," he explained. "We can get there in an hour or two - plenty of time." Emily smiled again, waiting on James to finish with his backpack before the pair of trainers headed out of the Pokémon Center towards the west side of town, ready to continue on to their next gym challenge.

* * *

Route 3 was, unlike the road leading from Viridian to Pewter, a substantially more rocky and hill-covered road, which was giving both the trainers and their Pokémon quite a bit of exercise. Emily and James had both released their full teams out to walk along with them, since the weather was nice and the path rather clear, and so nearly half a dozen Pokémon were walking along the path in various forms alongside their trainers, with the exception of James' Metapod, who was being carried by the young boy due to its severe lack of mobility. Emily's Spheal was enjoying itself quite a bit, rolling along the path happily instead of pulling itself along on its small feet, while her Staryu seemed to alternate walking on its two 'legs' and setting itself spinning through the air occasionally, flying around for a bit before returning to the path. Her Pidgey, much like James' Spearow, had discovered that her trainer's shoulder made a nice perch, and would switch between flying above the pair and resting on Emily's shoulder. James' Squirtle was the calmest of the Pokémon, and was content to walk alongside James and check out the surroundings with interest.

They had run across only one trainer so far, who had challenged James, but his Spearow had beaten the trainer's Bug-types soundly without being injured much at all - only a single tackle from a Kakuna, which had surprised James in the battle with the quick move. They'd also not seen many wild Pokémon about, mostly a few Pidgey and Weedle that had crossed into their path.

"So, do you know what the next gym is like?" Emily asked, dirt crunching underneath her feet as she walked.

"If I remember right, the next gym is full of trainers with Water-type Pokémon," James said, looking over at Emily.

"That's right..." Emily replied, seeming to remember as soon as James said something. She'd heard about the four sisters who ran the Cerulean Gym, as well as putting on shows occasionally with their gym's Pokémon for people to enjoy, almost like a circus. "...Do you think maybe they would give me some advice?"

"About training?" James asked, stopping for a moment and placing Metapod down on the ground in order to stretch his arms, also looping his other arm through the second strap on his pack. The Pokémon wasn't very heavy, but his backpack strap was beginning to dig into his shoulder because of the way he was holding Metapod.

"Yeah...aren't a lot of Ice-types also Water-types?" James nodded in understanding, and Emily smiled, continuing with her idea. "So, if the gym leader in Cerulean does train Water-types, then maybe some of the same things work for training Ice-types, right?"

"You're probably right, really," James admitted. "It's a good thought, and I'd say it's definitely worth asking about." He knelt down, satisfied that his backpack was comfortable, and picked up Metapod again, ready to continue on their way towards the mountain in the distance. Emily started to follow as he walked, Pidgey taking flight from its place on her shoulder once again as she moved.

It wasn't far down the road that they came across the second person that they'd seen since setting out from Pewter. Unlike their more casual attire, the person approaching them was dressed in a thick, forest-green shirt with long sleeves and long pants, along with brown hiking boots. He looked to be a little older than either of them, and his spiky hair was colored somewhere in-between blond and a light brown, almost matching the colors of the small Pokémon that hiked at his side. The Pokémon stood only around two feet in height, and looked vaguely like a small mouse, sporting a tan underbelly and snout along with darker-yellow skin that covered the rest of its body, traced by small black lines that almost segmented the skin off into squares akin to a kind of plating. Its small, stubby arms and legs each ended in tiny claws, three on the hands and two on its feet, and dark eyes looked up at the pair of trainers with an innocent gaze.

James threw up a hand and waved to the boy, receiving one in return as they approached each other. "Coming back from Mount Moon?" he asked, earning a small nod for his trouble.

"Yeah - went hiking to see what I could find, but figured I'd head back to town for a while and get something to eat," the boy replied. "Name's Brett. You two headed to the mountain too?"

"We're taking the tunnels to get to Cerulean City," Emily replied. "I'm Emily, and this is James," she said, introducing the both of them politely before looking down at the Pokémon beside him. "What kind of Pokémon do you have there?"

"This is my Sandshrew," he remarked, kneeling down and rubbing the top of the small mouse's head. Emily and James both reached for their Pokédexes, having not seen any of the tiny Pokémon's species before.

* * *

_**Sandshrew****  
Type: Ground****  
Level: 13****  
Info: Sandshrew, the Mouse Pokémon. When it curls up into a ball, it can make any attack bounce off harmlessly. Its hide has turned tough and solid as a result of living in the desert.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

"It's so cute..." Emily said, also kneeling down to get a better look at the Pokémon. It looked at Emily for a few seconds, examining her, before giving a squeaky "Shrew!" and looking up at Brett. He laughed before standing up, putting one hand on his hip and looking between Emily and James.

"Hey, you guys wouldn't be interested in having a quick battle, would you? Me and Sandshrew already worked up an appetite, but it might be fun for the rest of my team to get some exercise too."

"What do you say, Em?" James asked, looking over at his companion. "I battled the last trainer we came across, so it's only fair you get a chance to battle too."

"Alright!" the blond-haired girl replied, looking over at Brett. "What kind of battle?"

"Two on two?" he suggested, shrugging. "I've only got two others with me right now."

"That's fine," Emily said, nodding. A nudging at her feet caused her to look down, only to see her Staryu gently prodding her with one of its 'arms,' giving what could've been the equivalent of an expectant look on a Pokémon with more of a human-like face. "Someone's eager, aren't they?" she said with a laugh, smiling at the small Water-type. "Okay, okay, you can go first," she told it, causing it to jump into the air happily before taking a position in front of her. Brett chuckled at the eagerness of the starfish Pokémon, stepping back a bit to give his own Pokémon some room to work with before reaching behind his back and pulling out a Poké Ball.

"Ledyba, come on out!" he said, releasing a Pokémon that looked almost exactly as the name suggested - it was a large ladybug, standing even taller than the Sandshrew on six short, spindly legs ending in globe-like feet. Two thick antennae rose from its head, and its white and black eyes stood out against the red and black-spotted shell and light yellow underbelly.

_**

* * *

Ledyba****  
Type: Bug/Flying  
Level: 11  
Info: Ledyba, the Five Star Pokémon. Ledyba communicate using a fluid that they secrete from where the legs join the body. They are said to convey feelings to others by altering the fluid's scent.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Emily looked at the Pokédex's information for a few seconds before putting it away and looking down to Staryu. "Start off with Rapid Spin!" she commanded, watching as the starfish lifted itself off the ground and began spinning rapidly as it flew through the air at Ledyba. Brett gave no command at all as Staryu approached, instead watching with folded arms as Ledyba leapt from the ground and flew out of the way of the attack, circling around to meet the Water-type in the air. The spinning starfish met the Bug-type's legs in a quick clash in mid-air, the Ledyba's six legs lashing out in quick yet light punches as it batted Staryu away before landing again.

"Try a Water Gun!"

Staryu landed quickly on the ground, mostly unfazed by the flurry of light blows delivered by the small ladybug, before shooting a small jet of water from its top point towards the Ledyba. It struck the small bug in the face, pushing it onto its back two legs briefly before it caught itself and shifted out of the way. The Ledyba's wings lifted up from under its shell then, starting to flap them rapidly as a faintly-hearable buzz seemed to echo through the area. Emily looked around for a moment as the noise drifted through the area, but her gaze settled on Staryu as the Water-type wobbled, stumbling around on its 'legs' as if dizzy.

"...What's wrong?" Emily asked, not quite sure what was going on. James looked over at the Bug-type as it retracted its wings, starting to move forward on its six legs towards Staryu.

"I think it's confused, Em!" he said, both trainers watching as Staryu suddenly lunged forward into a tackle at empty air, wobbling again as it caught itself somewhat but left its back open to the Ledyba.

"Look out!"

Ledyba jumped suddenly, once again releasing a quick series of strikes into Staryu's back that sent it flopping to the ground 'face'-first. Before Emily could think about giving another command, however, Staryu suddenly flipped back upright and spun on the ladybug, throwing itself bodily into it with surprising force and flipping it straight onto its back with ease. Both Emily and Brett looked visibly surprised, and Brett started to walk over to Ledyba, holding up a hand to Emily.

"Ledyba, you did fine," he said, striding over as Emily called Staryu and helping the upside-down ladybug flip itself over. It didn't look very injured, just dazed, but Brett seemed to be satisfied enough with its quick performance.

"Point for you, Emily," he continued, smiling and leading Ledyba away a bit before reaching behind his back again and taking out another Poké Ball. "Pachirisu, your turn!"

The Pokémon that appeared next was much smaller than both Ledyba and Sandshrew and appeared to be a very tiny squirrel in appearance, with a white body and aqua-colored ears along with a large tail that seemed bigger than its body, trimmed at the top with aqua-colored fur. Two bright yellow circles stood out on its cheeks, and Emily thought for a moment that she saw a spark of electricity dance across one of them as she took out her Pokédex once again.

* * *

_**Pachirisu  
Type: Electric  
Level: 10  
Info: Pachirisu, the Electric Squirrel Pokémon. It makes fur balls that crackle with static electricity, then stores them with berries in tree holes. A pair may be seen rubbing their cheek pouches together in an effort to store shared electricity.  
Attacks: Unknown.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Emily's eyes lit up - she'd thought Sandshrew was kind of cute, but this Pokémon was downright adorable! "Staryu, take a break," Emily said, looking around for a moment before spotting her Pidgey resting on the ground beside Spheal. "Pidgey, ready to go?"

The tiny bird looked over, giving an affectionate chirp in response before hopping up and gliding over to Emily, landing on the ground in front of her and looking at the squirrel-like Pokémon across from her. Pachirisu didn't waste any time, unlike Ledyba, quickly dashing forward at Pidgey as its body seemed to blur slightly from the speed. Before Pidgey even realized it, the tiny Pokémon had struck it in the chest with a body blow, sending it tumbling back in a heap of feathers.

"Are you okay, Pidgey?" Emily asked, surprised by the speed of the little squirrel. Pidgey shook itself for a moment after getting back to its feet, looking over at Pachirisu, and gave a louder squawk this time before lifting itself off the ground with its wings. "That's the spirit! Try a Gust attack!"

Pidgey flapped its wings quickly, kicking up bits of dust and grass as it did so and creating a small whirlwind in front of it that started moving towards Pachirisu at a fairly quick rate of speed, but the Electric-type just leapt nimbly aside, avoiding the brunt of the small tornado before dashing at Pidgey again and leaping up towards it. The tiny bird tried to evade, but found itself once again too slow to avoid the leaping Pokémon, which crashed into it and sent it falling to the ground again, this time joined by its opponent as it failed to land on its feet. Pidgey chirped again, but it had more difficulty getting back to its feet this time, whereas Pachirisu was already dancing around in front of it, ready for another attack.

"Okay, I give!" Emily said quickly, holding up a hand and walking over to Pidgey as the Pachirisu chittered happily at its victory. Quickly, she knelt down, scooping up the small bird and making sure it wasn't seriously hurt. "That Pokémon of yours is really fast..." she added, looking down at the squirrel-like Pokémon as it bounded away towards Brett.

"Yeah, Pachirisu's the fastest one in my team," Brett said, kneeling down and watching as the Electric-type leapt up onto his shoulder in one quick movement. "So, looks like it's an even match, huh?" Emily nodded as the look on her face turned to faint confusion - she'd been wanting to ask a question since the battle's start.

"Why weren't you giving your Pokémon any commands?"

Brett smiled in understanding; this wasn't the first time he'd been asked that. "Well, I know it's a little odd, but I like seeing what my Pokémon can do on their own without me telling them what to do. The more comfortable they are not being given orders, the easier it'll be if we ever get put in a situation where I _can't _give orders. I go hiking out here a lot, and I know there's a lot of things that could happen out here, so I guess it's a kind of backup plan, just in case."

Emily's expression gave way to understanding - it was a pretty good idea, actually, and she'd never thought about that before. The older trainer nodded, noticing the look on Emily's face, before recalling Pachirisu and Ledyba into their Poké Balls.

"I should probably head back to Pewter, now...I think we're all hungry after that. Thanks for the battle, Emily - it was nice meeting you both."

"Nice meeting you, too."

"Nice to meet you!"

Emily and James both waved as Brett started jogging back down the path, his Sandshrew keeping pace with him as he ran back towards the city.

"Pidgey's okay, I take it?" James asked, looking at the tiny bird still held in Emily's arms.

"She's fine," Emily replied with a nod, letting the bird take flight again. "Just a little winded, I think. I didn't want her to get hurt, since we don't know where the Pokémon Center is yet."

"Good thinking," James stated, looking back down the path. The mountain was closer than it had been earlier, and seemed much larger now that they were nearly at the base of it. He reached down to pick up Metapod again, only to hear the loud cry of a bird nearby as a duo of fairly large Pidgey flew out of the nearby trees, squawking angrily at the pair of trainers - apparently, they had been drawn by the short battle and felt like their territory was being invaded. One of the pair wasted no time in diving at Squirtle, who countered immediately with a spray of bubbles that forced the Pidgey to ascend or get hit.

"Spheal! Powder Snow!" Emily yelled, quickly sending Spheal in to help - she didn't want to hurt the Pidgey, as they were just protecting what they felt was their home, but neither did she want to get hurt by either of them. The burst of snow caught the Pidgey that hadn't attacked, having not expected an attack from the side, and it wobbled in the air before touching down on the ground as the second circled around for another attack.

"Metapod, wait for it to close in, then Tackle it," James said, stepping back towards Emily so as to not be in the way of the attacks of his Pokémon. Squirtle stepped back with him, but obligingly watched, ready to jump in if needed. The Pidgey dove down at Metapod, seeming to sense easier prey, but that just gave Metapod a better target as it shook once, then launched itself directly at the oncoming bird. The wild Pidgey couldn't stop in time and found itself slammed directly by the Bug-type, a collision which sent it to the ground as well as Metapod itself, the tiny Flying-type seeming to take the worst of it thanks to Metapod's hard shell.

"Watch out!"

The other Pidgey had, by this time, recovered, and was now aimed squarely at the fallen Metapod, talons and beak ready to strike. Before it could, another burst of snow from Spheal crashed heavily into it, causing it to land awkwardly on the ground instead, bits of its wings covered in frost. The two Pidgey watched the trainers for a few long seconds before deciding to flee back to the brush, getting away from the tougher Pokémon.

"You okay?" James asked Emily, looking over at her and her Pokémon to make sure no one was hurt.

"I'm fine," she said, "but..."

Her eyes were staring at something else, and James followed her gaze to the fallen Metapod, who was starting to glow with a faint green shine, which was getting brighter by the second. James simply smiled, realizing what was happening as the shell started to crack faintly in places - his guess had been right after all.

"It's evolving again?" Emily asked, causing James to nod.

"I thought it was close to evolving again back when we were in Pewter," he said, smiling. "The nurse thought so, too, and looks like we were right."

The shell that made up Metapod's body split down the center in a jagged shape, splitting open suddenly and letting two large wings emerge from the cocoon. As it did, the rest of the cocoon seemed to melt into energy that flowed into the emerging form, with the light finally resolving into what looked like a large butterfly. It sported a purple body with pale blue feet, tiny 'hands,' and a mouth, as well as large red eyes and white wings with a black outline that were as tall as its body, around three feet in height. Two long antennae sat atop its head, and it chittered happily as it flapped its way into the air.

"Freeeee!"

* * *

_**Butterfree  
Type: Bug/Flying  
Level: 10  
Info: Butterfree, the Butterfly Pokémon. It has a superior ability to search for delicious honey from flowers. It can seek, extract, and carry honey from flowers blooming over six miles away.  
Attacks: Tackle, String Shot, Harden, Confusion**_

_**

* * *

**_

James put away his Pokédex as he walked over to his new Butterfree, grinning widely. "I told you that you'd be flying before you knew it!" he said, earning another excited cry from the large butterfly.

"It's...beautiful!" Emily exclaimed, running over to look at the newly-evolved Pokémon. Butterfree seemed to be enjoying the attention, flying around happily to show off its new wings.

"They tend to keep to themselves in the wild, so I hear, which is why you don't see many of them out in the forest unless you're really looking for them."

"So, that's why we didn't see any in Viridian Forest?" Emily asked. James nodded, then took another look down the path.

"Probably..." he started, turning back to the younger trainer. "Let's go ahead and get going, Emily - we can't be too far from the Pokémon Center now."

"Alright!"

Emily laughed as Spheal started rolling along the path again in front of her with Staryu not far behind it, spinning through the air to join Pidgey, Butterfree, and Spearow in the aerial antics as the pair of trainers continued making their way towards the base of the mountain before them.

* * *

It took me quite a while to figure out what to do with this chapter, because I didn't want to simply blaze through to Mount Moon and leave everything else in only a paragraph or two, but nor did I want to bore with overly-long descriptions of what is, effectively, a very simple route. So, I wound up taking inspiration from the anime itself, specifically how the episodic formats often have the characters interacting with other minor characters. Whether the ones I introduce here will show up again or not, I don't know, but I'd like to try and make things recurring to enhance the feel of the world.

Emily's team:

Spheal - Level 12, Female, Docile nature  
Ability: Thick Fat  
Attacks: Defense Curl, Powder Snow, Growl, Water Gun, Encore

Staryu - Level 11, Genderless, Hasty nature  
Ability: Natural Cure  
Attacks: Tackle, Harden, Water Gun, Rapid Spin

Pidgey - Level 10, Female, Modest nature  
Ability: Keen Eye  
Attacks: Tackle, Sand-Attack, Gust

James' team:

Squirtle - Level 13, Male, Lonely nature  
Ability: Torrent  
Attacks: Tackle, Tail Whip, Bubble, Withdraw, Water Gun

Spearow - Level 12, Male, Bashful nature  
Ability: Keen Eye  
Attacks: Peck, Growl, Leer

Butterfree - Level 10, Female, Lax nature  
Ability: Compoundeyes  
Attacks: Tackle, String Shot, Harden, Confusion

I realized as I was writing this chapter that I left out the genders of Emily and James' Pokémon, so I've now included that. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and as always, please read and review.


End file.
